Remembering
by daintydreams
Summary: The Guardians want Jack to grow up and at least show some kind of responsibility. They don't know that he, quite simply, can't. The Man In the Moon sends the Guardians and the Burgess kids into the whirlpool called memories.
1. Chapter 1

_A/n:_ I'm new at this all so please forgive any grammar mistakes and spelling errors. I accept any types of criticism but try to minimize your language in them if you decide to curse. I hope you like this! Please review and help a newbie out! I'm still lost with all of the rules and such. I'm only going on a whim here by all of the other stories I've read on this sight when I wasn't a member. Also, I'm absolutely terrible at accents so Bunnymund and North are going to be talking normally (but I'm still going to try) but you can simply imagine their accents. Also, I'm very sorry if the characters seem a little bit OOC. Plus, I know that this topic is overused a lot, from what I've seen, but I decided that I'd give it a shot anyway. Oh, and in this (and all of my other impending RotG fics, Jack will be fourteen years old.

_Disclaimer:_ I do not own Rise of The Guardians or any of the familiar occurrences that took place in both the book series and the movie. I only own my OC's and text. This is purely for my entertainment. I also don't own any book or music preferences. The Movie References belong to DreamWorks Corp. and their creators/creations. The Book References of the Guardians of Childhood belong to William Joyce. No copyright infringement intended.

_Memory _

**_Memory Jack's Thoughts_**

Guardian's/Burgess kids/Manny

Age(s)

Jamie/Pippa/Cupcake: 17

Caleb/Claude: 18

Monty: 16

Sophie: 12

_Chapter 1_

Jack yawned as he trudged through the forest that had freshly fallen snow littering the terrain. His staff was rested on his shoulders as he walked, smiling softly at how the snow crunched underneath his bare feet. It was seven years after they had defeated Pitch and he had no signs of coming back into his masochist way of power. Jack was relieved, finally there was some peace and balanced stored. A few benefits came from all of this. One of it was that he had gotten his memories back, two: he had believers and they'd escalated over the years (he really had to thank Jamie and the other Burgess children for that) and three: even though he was still clumsy on the ideas of getting close to someone, he finally had a family.

The wind shifted in the air and it seemed to wrap around Jack comfortingly. The wind was all Jack had back when he was in his 300 years of solitude epoch. He still considered the wind as family. Colorful, stretching lights flickered onto the horizon and it broke through Jack's thoughts as he looked up and then started to ascend into the frisky air of the morning winter haze. North was summoning the Guardians to the Pole.

Something was wrong. Jack could feel it—as North would normally say—in his belly.

* * *

When Jack entered the Globe room of Santoff Clausen, what he saw was expected. North and E. Aster Bunnymund were arguing about which holiday was more liked and more important, the elves were making their normal mischief, Sandy was trying to gather everyone's attention by his sand images flashing above his head and Tooth was fluttering around giving her mini Tooth's orders.

Jack swept off his feet and landed next to Sandy and then leaned against his staff. "Alright," He said, gathering everyone's attention. "What's so important North?"

"Ah, Jack." North, the large Russian, smiled heartedly at the white-haired boy. "Glad you could make it so soon."

"Really North," Bunny was agitated, but alas, it was usual. "It's two weeks before Easter; I wouldn't do this to you two weeks before Christmas."

"Yes," North nodded. "But Easter is not Christmas,"

"Now wait jus' a minute!" Bunny's eye twitched with anger.

Jack rolled his eyes and looked down at Sandy and promptly blocked everyone else from his hearing. "Hey, Sandy. You have any idea what this meeting is about?"

Sandy started speaking to Jack through his sand images. First was an image of North which flashed and changed into the Moon and then an arrow. Jack looked up to where the arrow was pointed and blinked in surprise at how luminescent the moon looked that night.

"Uh…guys?" Jack said.

Bunny and North kept arguing and Tooth was just too busy fluttering around with her mini tooth's to hear anything.

"GUYS," Jack yelled which gained their attention and ceased all sorts of communication.

"Vat is it, Jack?" North asked.

Jack didn't respond, he just pointed upwards with Sandy and the rest of the Guardians looked up to see the moon. "Ah, Man in Moon. Good to see you," North greeted and then turned around to look at Jack. "Jack, why you not tell me sooner?"

Jack just glared and Sandy thought cheerfully, _finally someone knows how I feel._

"Man in Moon," North ignored the glares and turned his attention back to Manny. "Vat is news?"

The Moon seemed to glow and gradually get larger and light shined down into the Globe room. A bright light lashed in their eyes and then, a voice filled their ears.

_"Guardians, I have been watching you for quite a while and it is time that you've learnt about the past of the youngest Guardian, Jack Frost. You all say that he needs to grow up and show some more responsibility in the world but the thing is, he cannot and you must understand why. The Burgess children will be looking into Jack's memories as well. Jack, you will also be present during this time."_

Jack was appalled. "What? M-My memories—Manny…you can't…" his voice drifted as did Manny's own. Another bright flash glared at them and they blinked before finding themselves in an unfamiliar room instead of the Globe room. They looked around to see the Burgess children inside of the room as well. Jamie was the first one to recover. The room was large, it was painfully white, and had long shite sofas and tables and chairs that littered around. Few paintings were scattered on the walls but there were no windows that added to the décor.

"Jack!" He beamed. Jamie ran towards the winter spirit and pulled him into a tight hug. Jamie had grown from being a scrawny nine year old child to a muscled, 6 foot tall seventeen year old. Jack was highly annoyed (and a little bit sad) since all of the Burgess children were now taller than him—with the exception of Sophie.

Pippa had a lean and toned body that fit the dancer that she was now; she stood at five feet and six inches with brunette hair that flowed down to her waist. Cupcake stood at the same height but her hair was cropped short and she had a unicorn barrette in her hair. Sophie was five feet and two inches and her untamable dirty blonde hair was always pulled into a bun or pony tail.

The twins Caleb and Claude stood at Jamie's height though they were a bit more muscled than him and they still obtained the hairstyles they did when they were young. Monty was five feet and eight inches, still wearing his glasses.

"Bunny!" Sophie squealed as she launched herself on the six foot one Pooka.

"Hey there, yah lil' ankle bittah," Bunny smiled down fondly at the twelve year old.

"Do you guys know what's going on?" Jamie asked after Jack had struggled through his vice like grip.

"Apparently, the Man in the Moon thinks we need to know about Jack's past life." Tooth explained. "Jack isn't very happy about it, though."

Everyone looked at Jack and snickered at his pouting expression.

"Look!" Cupcake exclaimed as a large rectangular bubble, that carried the shape of a large flat screen television, had expanded and an image started to flicker on its' surface.

"It's starting," Monty said in awe.

The noise simmered down to nothing as the memory started to play.


	2. Chapter 2

_A/N: Thanks so much for all of the reviews, favorites and follows. I honestly didn't expect so many people to like my story! Since I have absolutely no clue with how to respond to the reviews, I'll just do it here. Also, I'm having Jack's family get shifted around a little bit more. You'll see in this chapter. Sorry for any spelling/grammar mistakes._

**AmaraRae: **Thanks! I'm updating now

**A Natsume Yuujinchou lover: **Thanks so much! Phew, I'm really glad that I'm keeping the characters _in _character. I'm kinda feeling like I'm not giving Tooth too much to say like she normally does or that Jack's personality is all out of whack. I hope you enjoy this chapter!

**Melancholyblood: **hmmm….

**Peaceful Dragon Rose: **thanks!

**SupernaturalCheetahFast: **Thanks! I'm glad that you love it! You'll see the memory in this chapter!

_Disclaimer:_ I do not own Rise of The Guardians or any of the familiar occurrences that took place in both the book series and the movie. I only own my OC's and text. This is purely for my entertainment. I also don't own any book or music preferences. The Movie References belong to DreamWorks Corp. and their creators/creations. The Book References of the Guardians of Childhood belong to William Joyce. No copyright infringement intended.

**Warning(s): **_contains language, suggestive violent themes, mentions of starvation/malnourishment, mentions of child abuse, and a mention of a suggestive death threat. Read at your own risk. _

_Memory _

**_Memory Jack's Thoughts_**

Guardian's/Burgess kids/Manny

_Chapter Two _

"Guardians, and Burgess Children," Manny spoke, "Jack is three."

"I wonder what this one is going to be about," Tooth smiled at Jack nervously. Jack shifted uncomfortable on top of his staff. He was still peeved off about people seeing his most private, intimate moments in his past life.

_Maybe it's for the best…_Jack thought absentmindedly, _maybe now they'll finally realize that I truly can't grow up anymore. I'm forever stuck in the body and mind of a fourteen year old—I can't change. _

"Maybe it is for the best." He mumbled a loud.

"What was that, Jack?" Jamie looked over at the winter guardian of fun, who simply shrugged his shoulders in response and turned his attention back towards the memories.

_Inside of a tiny home, the set of the living room was exquisite. The floors, walls, and furniture were made out of oak wood. The living room décor had a stone-brick fireplace that was lit, an intricately made rug that was placed a foot away from it that was mixed with the colors silver, blue, and white that was obviously hand made. There were two chairs and a sofa that had carved arches from a carving knife. _

_On the walls, were paintings hung up on them that all represented a season. Lying on their stomach with their feet lifted up a bit and swinging in the air, with their hands propped underneath their chin was a three year old, one that was precisely named Jackson Overland. _

_Currently, he was staring long and hard at a chopped piece of wood and was looking at it as if it would jump up and start dancing at a moments' notice. After a few more minutes of inspection, Jack started to poke it with a stick._

"Jack?" North was highly amused. "Vat is you doing?"

"Why are yah pokin' it with ah stick?" Bunny raised an eyebrow.

Jack grumbled underneath his breath about how he knew that this was going to happen.

"What did it ever do to you?" Sophie asked.

Jack sighed. He knew that it was going to be a long, long day.

_"Come on," Jack whined. "Why aren't you moving?"_

_Jack glared at the piece of wood as if it would cower underneath his withering gaze. He huffed, before he threw his skinny stick into the fire place, which was already roaring with a crackling flame. "Jack?" A feminine voice called out to him. "Jack?" _

_"Coming, Apryl!" Jack responded before scrambling to his feet and scurrying past the colonial, wooden-made kitchen/dining room, and made his way outside where he drew back, immediately after feeling the shift in the winds and how freezing cold it was. "Brr,"_

_"Jack!" Apryl, Jack's twelve year old sister, gave him a reprimanding glare. "Jackson, you know you're not supposed to come outside without your coat!" _

_Jack gave her a sheepish smile and innocently quipped, "What coat?"_

Everyone laughed and Jack cracked a small smile. "Good one, Frostbite." Bunny chuckled.

_Apryl stared down Jack before she, too, cracked a smile and said, "I can't stay mad at you. Come on, inside you go." _

_"Apryl," Jack asked once Apryl shut the back door to their house and shook the snow off of her hand-me-down boots and clothing. "Where is Papa—and Mama, too?"_

_Apryl hesitated before biting down on her lip as she responded, "They're busy doing…uh…work. Nothing for you to worry about. Now, what would you like for supper?"_

_"What do we have?" Jack titled his head to the side a bit before staring up at Apryl with wide, innocent like eyes. Apryl's heart cracked at how he looked. Jack wasn't stupid; he was highly intelligent and observant for this age. It was only a matter of time before—Apryl shook those thoughts away from her mind and walked over to the storage area and started to rummage for any scraps for Jack to eat for supper. She'd rather herself starve than him. He needed more nutrients than she did._

_As Apryl got out the ingredients to make a simple bouillabaisse (a French family recipe)—with some to spare for breakfast—Jack watched her with fascination and wonder, with a faint smile that painted his lips. Apryl looked at him and chuckled, "What is so interesting about watching me cook?"_

_Jack shrugged. "I don't know. I just like watching you."_

_"Well, mister," Apryl playfully ruffled up his hair in which he glared at her playfully. "Since you want to watch me cook, how about you help me?" _

_"Really?" Jack's face lit up with excitement and hope and Apryl didn't have it in her heart to even think of the word no. Not with that face. _

_Apryl nodded. "Really,"_

_"You promise?" Jack held out his pinky with a serious look on his face._

_"I promise." Apryl wrapped her pinky around his tiny one with the same expression Jack had on her face. _

_"Alright," Jack nodded. "What do I do?" _

"Aw." All of the females in the room started to coo and "aw" at Jack, who was starting to contemplate his escape route.

"Don't even try it Jack," Manny's voice came unexpectedly. "You can't leave until all of the memories are done."

"This is just peachy." Jack grumbled whilst his male friends laughed at his expense.

"That was just too cute!" Pippa squealed and then looked at Jamie and pouted, "I want one."

Jamie's eyes widened and he looked startled and a little bit squeamish. Jack, however, was confused. "Want what?" Jack asked.

"A baby!" Pippa exclaimed. "Jack, you were just too adorable as a toddler!"

Claude clapped Jamie on the shoulder and whispered, "I feel so sorry for you."

Jamie just glared at his friend in response and grumbled, "Shut up."

Sandy mutely laughed at the scene. "Uh…guys?" Monty said, pointing towards the memories. "Aren't we supposed to be watching this?"

"Oh, you're completely right!" Tooth giggled and they all turned their attention back towards the memory.

_Until two in the afternoon came, Jack and Apryl were "slaving" in the kitchen as they prepared supper for the family. "When is Mama and Papa coming home?" Jack asked his older sister._

_Apryl shrugged. "Maybe not until later, Jack. I don't know. But, you need to behave today, alright? We don't want to give Mama any more gray hairs than we have to."_

"You gave your mother gray hairs!?" Sophie exclaimed right as Caleb shouted, "Good job, man!"

"What can I say?" Jack shrugged, smirking. "I was a very, very stubborn child growing up."

Bunny snorted and muttered, "Stubborn ain't the start 'o it."

_Jack furrowed his eyebrows together, confused at his sisters' choice of wording. "What?" _

_Apryl simply chuckled and ruffled up his messy lop of hair again. "Nothing, Jackie. Nothing at all,"_

_"Hey!" Jack combed his fingers through his hair, pouting and glaring at his sister. "Don't call me Jackie—and don't mess with the hair! It takes hours to get it perfect!"_

_Apryl snorted, "Like you know what perfect means!"_

_Jack rolled his eyes and proceeded to ignore his sister. The grumbling monster in his stomach caused him to wince and flinch with hunger pains as the aroma of the food was becoming too unbearable to beat. "Sissy?" Jack whimpered, clutching his lower abdomen. "When are we allowed to eat? I'm hungry."_

_Guilt and sorrow flooded Apryl's features as she stared down at the tiny tot. "Sorry bud, it's the rules." She sighed, combing her fingers through her curly hair. "We aren't allowed to eat without Mama and Papa."_

_"But what if they come home too late and I'm already sleeping?" Jack whined/groaned. _

_Apryl's shoulders slouched. "You know what Papa would do—," She sucked in a breath, cutting herself off as Jack looked at her curiously. "We just have to wait, Jack. Can you be a big boy and wait?"_

_Jack nodded and Apryl let out the relieved breath she hadn't known she was keeping in._

"Vat is she speaking of, Jack?" North asked the white-haired boy. Jack harbored a solemn but stoic expression. His hands were curled into fists and his knuckles were turning whiter than his normal skin tone at how hard he was holding them.

"Jack?" Tooth fluttered around Jack nervously while airborne. Sandy patted his knee comfortingly since he was on his dream cloud of sand and in the air as well.

"Frostbite?" Even Bunny was concerned at what his older sister had meant to say.

"It's nothing," Jack whispered even though it was anything but. "Just keep watching, you'll figure it out soon enough."

_"Hey Jack," Apryl beamed suddenly, "do you want to go play outside?"_

_"No." Jack responded, crossing his tiny arms over his chest in defiance. "I want to eat, not play."_

_"I promise that if we play than you won't be so hungry." Apryl was close to begging._

_Jack was stubborn and vehemently refused. "No! No! No! You said that the last time—and you were wrong!" _

_Apryl cursed underneath her breath, "Damn you for being so vigilant at this age, Jack—damn you!"_

_"What does that mean?" Jack looked at her curiously. _

_"What does what mean?" Apryl asked._

_"Damn?" Jack titled his head to the side again. "What does damn mean? Is it a bad word?"_

_Apryl's eyes widened and she face-palmed herself with the frustration of three-year-old Jack. "Jack, don't say that word."_

_"Why not?" Jack asked. _

_"Because," Apryl sucked in her teeth. "I said so."_

_"So?" Jack challenged._

_"Jack," Her voice had high warning bells ringing off and smartly, Jack shut his mouth even though he was highly disappointed. _

"Only you, Jack." Jamie snickered. "Only you."

_Jack huffed and then puffed, and then huffed some more before he said, "Alright. I'll go play outside."_

_"Oh thank God!" Slipped out of Apryl's mouth before she could stop it and Jack giggled. Apryl rolled her eyes before she responded, "Go and get your winter coat and boots! Hurry along now!"_

_Jack scurried off to grab his coat and slip his feet inside of the heavy shoes. Once he was all buttoned up and tied, Apryl opened the back door and Jack ran outside to play in the snow. The Overland house was a few good decent miles away from the settlement. It was a pain but sometimes, it was nice to have the peace and quiet that the surrounding area normally did. After all, they had their lake all to themselves and when it was frozen over during the winter, they'd gladly ice skate. _

_Apryl made a mental note to, somehow, grab some skates for Jack so he could learn how to ice skate. "Apryl!" Jack chirped, "Come help me build a snowman!" _

_"Alright," Apryl agreed and slowly jogged towards the tot and they began to make a snowman. _

_After they'd finished their creation, they were both slathered with snow and shivering slightly from the frisky air. _

_"There." Apryl smiled as she added the last eye decoration._

_"I shall call you…" Jack exclaimed and then started to think. _

_"Mr. Snowman?" Apryl suggested but Jack shook his head. _

_"Bunny!" Jack smiled and then proceeded to clap his hands excitedly. _

"Why a bunny?" Tooth asked.

"It looks nothing like it!" Monty said.

"Well," Cupcake, who was once silent, put in her two cents. "I think that it's a wonderful name."

"Thank you, Cupcake!" Jack smiled at her. "Finally—_someone _who understands my knowledge!"

"And probably the only person who ever will," Sophie retorted and everyone was laughed. Well, everyone except Jack and Cupcake, whom simple rolled their eyes.

_"Bunny?" Apryl repeated and once Jack jubilantly nodded and then questioned again, "You want to name it Bunny?"_

_"Yes!" Jack nodded before jumping up and down from excitement. "It's the perfect name!"_

_"Jack…" Apryl started. "It doesn't even look like a bunny!"_

_"So?" Jack refused to back down from its' given name. "I bet the Easter Bunny looks like a kangaroo but I'm not complaining!"_

"Really, mate?" Bunny glared at Jack, who only smiled in response.

"Even back then you called Bunny a kangaroo!" Jamie laughed.

_"What? Apryl was starting to contemplate her little brothers' sanity level. "What are you talking about?" _

_Jack looked at her as if she should've already known this information. "The Easter Bunny…I bet he looks like a Kangaroo."_

_"How do you even know what one looks like?" Apryl was bewildered._

_Jack shrugged. "I have odd dreams at night."_

_"I bet." Apryl muttered. Apryl looked up to see the sun was starting to set and then she asked Jack, eagerly trying to vie for his attention away from eating supper. "Hey, Jackie, want to have a snowball fight?"_

_"Yeah!" Jack jumped up and down from excitement but then he stopped and scowled, "Stop calling me Jackie!"_

_In response, Jack got slapped in the face with a snowball. He sputtered out words that were incoherent and Apryl snickered. Jack wiped away the remainders of the snow that hadn't slipped off his face and he grumbled angrily before scooping up some snow in his hands but then looked at it curiously, wondering why it wasn't shifting into a ball._

_Jack groaned, "Ugh…this is just like that piece of wood!"_

_"What piece of wood—you know what, never mind." Apryl shook her head before crouching down next to her little brother and started to demonstrate how to make a proper snowball. "And that is how you make one."_

_"Really?" Jack smiled. "Sweet!"_

_And then, the snowball fight began. Throughout the fight, the both of them used the snowman Bunny as a shield and they were in fistfuls of bright laughter. Apryl looked up at the sky to see that it seemed to be around twilight. She fidgeted nervously; if their parents' were going to be home then Jack would really start complaining about being hungry._

_"Apryl?" Jack cried. "I don't wanna be a big boy anymore. I'm hungry!" _

Everyone, minus Jack, grew extremely worried and concerned. "Jack?" Tooth asked, placing her hand on his shoulder but he simply shied away before yanking his hood up on his face and looking down. The rest of the group shared looks with one another.

_Apryl grew angry at herself, why was she denying her little brother's supper? All because she was scared? Apryl scoffed at herself before turning to look at Jack and she said, "You know what, let's make you a small bowl. Then, we'll get you ready for bed."_

_"Yes!" Jack cheered before racing towards the house._

_"Jack!" Apryl laughed, running after the tiny thing. "Jack, wait! I have to take off your coat and boots! You're all wet, you know!"_

_"I can do it!" Jack called back. Apryl slipped inside to see Jack struggled with his coat buttons but at least his shoes were off and on the side. _

_"Jack," Apryl moved closer to help him but he hopped back. "No!" He insisted, "I can do it!"_

_"Alright," Apryl nodded, respecting his tiny sliver of gained independence just from a tiny coat. "I'll be making your supper. Just call me if you need me." Jack nodded and continued his focus on the buttons. Apryl maneuvered herself through the kitchen, grabbing the spoon, bowl, and napkin out from their cupboards and then walked towards the pot that held the food. _

_After giving Jack his serving, she let it rest on the wooden oak table in the middle of the kitchen, in front of Jack's respective seat. While wringing her hands nervously, losing herself deep into her thoughts, Apryl kept looking out of the window that was above the kitchen sink, her eyes searching for the silhouettes that were their parents. _

_She was so lost into her inner monologues that she missed Jack's frantic calls. "Apryl?" _

_"Apryl!"_

_ "Apryl!" _

_"APRYL!"_

Bunny winced, "Oi, Frostbite, yah have one set of lungs on yah."

_"Huh…?" Apryl blinked and then shook herself to attentiveness. She rushed towards Jack, who seemed to be tangled in his coat._

_"Sorry…" Jack's bottom lip jutted out and his eyes were damp with unshed tears. "I can't do it." _

_"That's alright, Jack." Apryl smiled softly at him. With gentle care, Apryl managed to get Jack untangled and safely out of his coat. She hung it up for it to dry and said, "Now, there's no need to cry. Go on and eat your supper."_

_Jack solemnly nodded before he climbed up on his chair, sitting on his knees, and promptly started to eat his food. It didn't go unnoticed how his older sisters' face sometimes twitched with deep lines of pain and how her stomach growled constantly._

_Jack frowned, looking down at the remnants of his food that he had left. Without further decisions, he shoved it towards his sister and demanded, "Eat."_

_Apryl looked down at the bowl. "Jack, I can't—,"_

_"Eat!" Jack demanded again, drawing out all of the letters in the word. "Eat! Eat! Eat!"_

_Apryl scowled, "If I eat the rest of this, will you hush?"_

_Jack nodded, then briefly thought about it and changed his mind to, "Maybe."_

_Apryl rolled her eyes before grabbing the bowl and scooping the rest of the food into her system. Suffice to say, she gobbled it down quickly. Hunger would do that to you, make you eat like a wild animal. Apryl looked up to see the outlines to two silhouettes and working quickly, she washed the dishes, wiped them dry and put them back in their places._

_She picked Jack up and rushed towards their tiny bed room. Setting him down on their bed, she rummaged through their clothes for suitable night clothes for him to wear. After finding them, she told Jack to change. Whilst he was changing, Apryl explained, "Jack, listen…you can't tell Papa that you ate supper, okay? Or that you gave it to me."_

_"Why not?" Jack asked innocently, before pulling his shirt over his head._

_"Because…" Apryl trailed off, struggling for words. "Because I said so, okay? Can you do that for me? Can you keep a secret?"_

_"Yes." Jack nodded. _

_Right then and there, the front door opened and Jack could hear the bickering voices of his mother and father. His pursed his lips and furrowed his eyebrows together, looking up at his sister with confusion. "It's nothing Jack," She soothed. "Let's just get you to bed, alright?" _

_Jack nodded and allowed Apryl to sweep him inside of their bed. She curled up next to Jack, wrapping her arms around him as the shouting voices got louder and they heard things crashing and breaking. Jack whimpered before shuffling closer into his sisters' embrace. _

_"Sh…Sh…," She cooed, "It's alright. It's just another disagreement. They'll be fine come morning, I promise."_

_A few moments of silence came from their parents before it started all over again. Apryl sighed before she slipped out of bed. "No!" Jack sobbed, grabbing her wrist. "Don't leave me alone!"_

_"I'll be right back, I promise you, Jack." Apryl kissed Jack's forehead tenderly. "I just need to go see if Mama is okay."_

_"Why wouldn't she be?" Jack asked._

_Apryl hesitated before shaking her head. "You'll understand when you're older, alright? I'll be back, I promise."_

_"Pinky promise?" Jack cried, looking so vulnerable at that moment._

_"Pink promise." _

_Jack nodded and curled himself into a tiny ball as Apryl slipped out of their room and towards the angry voices. Jack clamped his hands around his ears, trying hard to block out the screams. Soon enough, after exhaustion rolled in and golden drifts of sand swept inside of the room and proceeded to take away all of the bad things in Jack's life and filled it with snowball fights and ice skating with Apryl, Jack fell asleep. _

_But he didn't forget that Apryl broke the sacred pinky promise. She didn't come back. _

The memory vanished and everyone sucked in a breath. "Is she dead?" Claude asked before Caleb clapped him upside the head.

"I don't want to watch this anymore." Sophie whimpered as she wrapped her arms around Jamie's torso and promptly dug her face into his side. He patted her hair, looking at Jack.

Jack sighed and kept his hood up, head down. He couldn't look anyone in the eye. Not after what they just found out.

"I am sorry, Jack." North whispered.

"It's not your fault, North." Jack responded.

"It's your bloody fathers' fault!" Bunny growled and the others chirped in their agreements.

Jack sighed again, a long day it will be indeed.


	3. Chapter 3

_A/N: Thanks so much for all of the reviews, favorites and follows. Aright I know that this chapter is highly short and I'm sorry for that—lt's mostly a filler chapter. Sorry for any spelling/grammar mistakes. I'm not perfect. _

**Guest: Alina: **Aw….thanks so much, I feel so loved! I'm very happy that you like this story! Also, when I said that I was "new at this" I meant new at and writing fanfics in general. I'm not new at writing. I've been writing since…third-fourth grade…? I think…

**Synk: **I know right! I would just love to have toddler Jack! He'd be just too much but…then again; I'd have to deal with all of that mischief…eh…it'll be worth it.

**Caithlinn13: **Well, you don't have to wait any longer! Thanks for the review!

**Jack Frost the Frost Child: **Really? You actually ADDED ME TO YOUR COMMUNITY?! *faints for a few minutes* thanks so much! (Sorry for the caps, I accidentally turned them on). I didn't know that my story would get this much love!

**Magiccatprincess: **thanks…I hope you enjoy this chapter.

**SupernaturalCheetahFast: **Thanks! Here's the next chapter!

**Sleepery: **….thanks….?

**Guest: Mouse: **Thank you! I really don't think I deserve an A…here are a lot of people that are way better than me on this site…

**Sealaustinallyheart: **LOL, I believe that he will receive a lot of hugs from Tooth and the others, but mostly Tooth.

**Flaming Eagle: **Thanks! It's very shocking to see so many people already loving this story, when it just began.

_Disclaimer:_ I do not own Rise of The Guardians or any of the familiar occurrences that took place in both the book series and the movie. I only own my OC's and text. This is purely for my entertainment. I also don't own any book or music preferences. The Movie References belong to DreamWorks Corp. and their creators/creations. The Book References of the Guardians of Childhood belong to William Joyce. No copyright infringement intended.

**Warning(s): **_contains language, suggestive violent themes, mentions of starvation/malnourishment, mentions of child abuse,. Read at your own risk. _

_Memory _

**_Memory Jack's Thoughts_**

Guardian's/Burgess kids/Manny

_Chapter three_

"Vat happen to Apryl?" North asked Jack once he shuffled closer towards the spirit. Jack's hood was still up on his head and his head casted downwards. His eyes were shut and he was trying his best to erase the tears, erase the images, and erase the words. "Jack?"

_For once in my life, _Jack thought to himself, _I actually don't want my memories back…_

"I hate to break this…familial love-fest going on by Jack," Cupcake scowled, "But we have another memory coming."

Everyone, except Jack, turned their heads towards the screen. Manny's voice was expected, "Jack is five."

_Jack woke up from his midday nap to hear shrill screaming coming from his parents' room. He scrambled off of his bed only to tumble to the floor. He heard another scream which made him feel odd levels of fear inside of his emotions. He scuttled out of his room and down the hall to his parents' room. But, before he could even get halfway there, he was snatched up by the back of his shirt._

_"What the—hey!" Five-year-old Jack protested. _

_"Leave them be, boy." His fathers' rough, emotionless voice sent unneeded shivers up and down Jack's spine and he clamped his mouth shut. "The bloody bitch deserved it."_

_Jack's eyebrows furrowed in confusion but he decided to ask what the word 'bitch' meant. Suddenly, Jack was thrown onto the living room floor and he scrambled back, afraid of his fathers' large physique that loomed over him as if he were a threatening tree in an ominous forest. _

_His father simply grumbled incoherent words before slouching back down on one of the living room chairs with a wrapped bottle of gin in his hands and he stared with vacant eyes into the unlit, empty fireplace. It was summer, a season that Jack absolutely despised. But he knew that soon enough it would be fall, and following fall was winter. His favorite time of the year (besides spring that is)._

_Jack kept his eyes on his father, wincing and flinching every time he heard another loud scream erupt into his house. After an hour or so, Apryl, who was now fifteen years old, limped out of the room with their mother in tow. Jack's mother was currently four months pregnant and everyone in the household kept assuming that it was a boy. But Jack knew that they were wrong. _

**_I know they're wrong, _**_Memory Jack thought. __**It's a girl. **_

"What the bloody 'ell is that?" Bunny jumped, his ears flattening to his head a little bit.

"That's my thoughts." Jack spoke. "You're hearing my thoughts from the memory."

"How were you so sure that it was a girl?" Pippa asked.

Jack shrugged and said, "I don't know. I just…knew."

_"Mama?" Jack, timidly, asked his exhausted mother who plopped down on the couch, resting a hand on her round, protruding stomach._

_"Yes, Jack?" She asked her youngest son. "What is it?"_

_"If it's a girl," Jack started but he was cut off by his father._

_"Which it isn't," His father hissed. Jack's mother gave him a withering glare and in return, his father simply grunted and took another swing from his bottle._

_"If it's a girl," Jack started over. "May I name her?"_

_His mother gave him a warm smile, her eyes twinkling with mischief that was oh so familiar to Jack and it gave him a warm, fuzzy, comfortable feeling inside of his stomach that swirled. "Of course you can," She responded and Jack's grin grew wider._

_But then his father shrieked, "Apryl, you mother—," Jack wasn't able to hear what his father said next because his mothers' hands were clamped tightly over his ears. He saw that his fathers' face was beet red and there were veins starting to show on his forehead and neck. _

_He felt the thudding of his mothers' heart beat erratically as she pulled Jack closer towards her chest, curling him up into a ball as she held him on his lap once his father stumbled up from the couch and lumbered towards the kitchen where Apryl was preparing supper. Jack knew that he was supposed to close his eyes, it's what Apryl and his mother always told him to do but he simply couldn't look away._

_He heard nothing and only his vision was giving him a clue as to what was going on. He saw his fathers' fist fly but he couldn't see what it connected to; there was a muted thud coming from the kitchen and Jack's fear grew onto strong levels along with anxiety._

_Jack couldn't do anything but watch; he closed his eyes and tried to command sleep to come forth. _

_He fell asleep, but not before he heard the familiar blood-curling scream coming from Apryl's mouth._

"I think I'm going to be sick," Sophie groaned before covering her mouth, her face was ghastly pale.

Cupcake looked over at Jack with an unfathomable emotion that emerged in her orbs. Jack looked up and their eyes connected and he saw a very familiar emotion in them.

_She knows what it's like…_Jack thought. _She understands…_

* * *

A/n: I also have a question for you guys, if I made another story about RotG or maybe a story of one-shots, would you give it a chance?


	4. Chapter 4

_A/n: Thank you for all of the reviews, follows, and favorites last chapter! Seriously, I never expected people to like my story so far. I have another question, should I do my profile? Anyway, please review! Sorry for any grammar mistakes and/or spelling errors._

_Disclaimer:_ I do not own Rise of The Guardians or any of the familiar occurrences that took place in both the book series and the movie. I only own my OC's and text. This is purely for my entertainment. I also don't own any book or music Movie References belong to DreamWorks Corp. and their creators/creations. The Book References of the Guardians of Childhood belong to William Joyce. No copyright infringement intended.

**Warning(s): **_contains language, suggestive violent themes, mentions of starvation/malnourishment, and mentions of child abuse. Read at your own risk. _

_Chapter Four _

"Jack is five again," Manny said to the silent, grim-faced crowd of Guardians and the chosen teenagers of Burgess.

_Jack simply didn't understand. _

_He was lost._

_He was confused._

_But, he was infuriated._

_He felt unfathomable rage that piled up in his stomach and it was all pointed towards his deadbeat father. Standing there, next to his hysterically sobbing mother that clutched to his five-year-old body as if her life depended on it, Jack felt the oddest urge to hit something, to hit someone. It was all just a misunderstanding, though, right? Apryl would wake up soon—she had to. She promised that she wouldn't leave Jack alone at night ever again—she promised that she would come back. _

_So why did Jack wake up in the morning cold and alone, having to trudge towards the living room where he found the still twisted, broken, and bruised body of his sleeping older sister. Of course, Jack shuffled closer and rolled his sister onto her back; her eyes were empty and wide open, as was her mouth. There was an icky, dried substance that was matted into Apryl's hair, covering her face in splotches, and it was soaking her clothes. When it was dried, the eerie thing looked reddish-brown but if it was still moist, it was bright red._

_Jack, simply, didn't get it._

_The Midwifes of the village came with remorse-filled gazes and grief flooded eyes as they scooped up a sleeping Apryl and carried her towards their parents' room, where her mother just would stop sobbing and screaming, "No! No! No! Not my baby! Not my Apryl! No!" over and over again as if it were her mantra._

_People that Jack had never seen before, blurred and forgotten faces, kept scuttling in and out of his house but he stayed tucked into a corner, hugging the quilt that he shared with Apryl close to his chest, eyes wide, face filled with innocence that people had long since forgotten and he watched. Jack observed and he retained information, storing it inside of his brain for later to dissect into his five-year-old knowledge._

_The only thing Jack understood was what an old elder of the village had told him, "Your sister is sleeping. She is…peaceful, right now, so you mustn't disturb, young one."_

_So Jack kept quiet the entire day and didn't even whimper or complain once when his stomach started to fill with the familiar cry of hunger. People kept rushing to and fro, bringing food and gifts, giving Jack and his still-sobbing mother their condolences (whatever that meant.). _

_"Ingrid," Someone had told his mother, "You must stay strong and not dwell on Apryl too much nor long for you still have a youngling to look after and you have another on the way."_

_"I know," His mother cried. "But it's so hard. She's my baby, Margo. My baby!" _

_"I know, honey." The person soothed, gathering Jack's mother into their arms for a hug. "I know."_

_Everyone except Jack seemed to know and it was making him quite mad. _

**_Why is everyone so sad, _**_Memory Jack thought. __**Apryl's just sleeping. She'll wake up soon…**_

"Oh no," Tooth sunk onto her knees, her eyes wide with horror, her hands cupped near her mouth.

North looked over at the grief-stricken Guardian of Fun and wrapped a comforting arm around his shoulder.

"Mate…" Bunny started but he was at loss of words, for once.

"I don't get it." Sophie said. "What's going on?"

Jamie looked down at his younger sibling that was still clutching his hips. "I'm guessing you'll see later on." Sophie nodded but her curiosity peaked once she saw that almost everyone in the room was trying their best not to cry.

**_Right? Apryl will wake up,_**_ Jack thought firmly. __**She promised to teach me how to skate! So, she'll wake up…she has to.**_

_The day past and went but only this time, Jack tossed and turned, thrashing in his sleep since he didn't have Apryl to soothe him. Jack groaned, sitting up on his bed that felt so empty and so big without Apryl curled up next to him. It seemed to swallow Jack whole. _

_Jack heard the clanging of pots in the kitchen and the garbled voices of his father. He sighed, it was normally Apryl that went out to help their father since their mother couldn't get up and do it because of her pregnancy. Jack slid off of his bed, determined that since Apryl wasn't waking up yet, he would take on his responsibilities. _

_Someone had to make their father stop all of that racket. Jack peeked his head around the corner to see his father gulping down more sets of his stored alcohol. Jack felt angry again but he pushed his rage back. He started to focus on the bigger picture at hand. _

_He observed his father and his movements, deciding on how to approach him. He didn't have to because his parents' room door was slammed open and he heard the stomping feet of…Apryl! _

_His hopes soared high levels but plummeted to the ground once he saw that it was not his sister but, in fact, his mother. "Be quiet," His mother hissed, her eyes narrowing on the mans' silhouette. "We have guests in the house and I will not allow you to disturb their sleep!"_

_"Who the fuck is you to tell me what to do, woman!" His father stood and towered over his mother, before taking his bottle and smashing it against the table. His mother flinched and cowered back once his father advanced on her. _

_Jack's anger flared octaves he never knew existed and he felt himself quiver along with the newly felt emotions that showed in his beet-red faced face. _

_"Back away from me," His mother retaliated. "You're nothing but a monster! You took my baby away from me!"_

_"I did no such thing!" His father responded._

_"Yes you did!" His mother yelled, forgetting about the guests. "You killed Apryl, you bastard!"_

_Jack couldn't hold the surprised gasp that came from his mouth as he looked down at the ground, trying to comprehend what was just said._

**_Apryl…kill…Apryl…kill…_**_Jack thought with emotions ranging from sadness to grief and all in between. __**Kill…kill…Apryl…never wake up again…Apryl…dead…**_

Sophie gasped once she finally understood what was going on and didn't hold back the tears that fell down her cheeks.

_A loud crack filled his ears and he looked up to see his mother crashing into the couch, her back ramming into the furniture. Her mother's pain-filled gasp was just enough to send Jack spiraling to an ire-hazed dance. _

_Jack's ears couldn't process what he'd said but it was loud enough to grasp the attention of both his parents. Jack didn't even remember what he did next, he was controlled by his anger. All he did remember, once the fog was lifted, was seeing his father on the ground, unconscious and a broken vase shattered on the ground next to him._

_His mother looked at him and opened her mouth to say something before she gasped, clutching her stomach as her face twisted with agony._

_"The baby is coming…"_


	5. Chapter 5

_A/n: thank you for all the reviews, follows, and favorites last chapter! I'm so sorry for not updating for the past couple of weeks; I got too into my novel that I'm trying to finish up. (Once I get it copyrighted and get the title page image, I'll put it up on FictionPress and give you guys the link!) Plus, I'm doing school work still. Anyway, I'm back! Please review! Sorry for spelling errors and/or grammar mistakes. Also, I want to have at least 10-15 chapters for this story and afterwards do another story or a one-shot series story. But, enjoy! Also, should I have a few memories of Jack when he became Jack Frost? _

_ Disclaimer: _I do not own Rise of The Guardians or any of the familiar occurrences that took place in both the book series and the movie. I only own my OC's and text. This is purely for my entertainment. I also don't own any book for movie preferences. The Movie References belong to DreamWorks Corp. and their creators/creations. The Book References of the Guardians of Childhood belong to William Joyce. No copyright infringement intended.

**Warning(s): **_contains language, suggestive violent themes, mentions of starvation/malnourishment, and mentions of child abuse. Read at your own risk._

_Chapter Five_

"Jack is seven years old." Manny said. Everyone was still in shock at the events that had recently happened in his memories. A muffled shout could be heard as Jack was enveloped unexpectedly into a hug by North. North was squeezing the tiny winter spirit, who was struggling to get out of the grip and breathe. After five minutes, North finally let the young guardian go and he gasped and gulped in his breaths.

Silent and melancholy, the gang looked back towards the bubble and started to watch Jack's memories.

_The echoes of giggles could be heard. There were fresh footprints in the snow leading a trail in the white forest. _

_"Jack!"_

_A little girl around the age of two with bouncing brunette curls and dark hazel eyes ran, following the footprints. _

_"Jack!"_

_Out of no where, hands shot out and captured the young babe into a hug. She squealed and laughed as fingers flicked and tickled her sides. Tears ran down her face as she laughed and beamed with happiness. _

_"I got you!" Seven-year-old Jack laughed with her. "You're not so great with tickle wars, Z."_

_"Yes!" The adorable tot insisted. "Yes! Yes! Yes!"_

_"Again?" Jack smirked._

_"Yes!" Curls bounced everywhere as she nodded feverishly. _

_Jack laughed. "Alright, Zinnia. Do you want to be It this time?"_

_"No! Jack do it!" Zinnia said as Jack let go of her. Her boots sloshed the snow around as she stomped her feet. "Jack do! Jack do! Jack do!" _

_"Okay." Jack's eyes sparkled. "I'll be it."_

_"Yay!" Zinnia jumped up and down, giggling and clapping her hands excitedly. "Yay!"_

_Jack laughed but stopped himself short when he heard his sisters' and his name being called by his mother. "Jackson and Zinnia Overland! Supper time!"_

_"C'mon, Z; it's time for some grub." Jack smiled before he picked up the tot. While Zinnia babbled nonsense in her baby talk, Jack was starting to lose himself in his thoughts._

**_It's only been two years since Apryl's death. It's a good thing the Court found my father guilty about her death. I would never want Zinnia to grow up in that kind of household. _**_Jack thought to himself as he came upon the familiar path that led to their home. __**But I still worry about Mother-she's so sad now-a-days and sometimes, she forgets things. But no matter, it's almost spring! Zinnia's favorite season of the year…I promised her I'd take her Easter egg hunting…I wonder if we'll catch the Easter bunny…**_

Bunny turned to look at Jack and smirked at him. Jack rolled his eyes and gave his signature smirk as well.

_Jack and Zinnia entered their house and the aroma of food lifted both of their spirits even more. "Mum!" Zinnia yelled as she wiggled out of Jack's grip and scrambled towards the kitchen where their mother was cooking. Jack shrugged off his winter coat and boots and looked longingly at the changed rug in the living room. It was the exact spot where Apryl—_

**_No Jack. Don't think about Apryl right now. _**_ Jack scolded himself, shaking his head. __**She's in a better place right now…just don't think about it. Never think about it.**_

"Why don't you want to think about Apryl?" Monty asked, pushing up his glasses. "Don't you want to think about the happy memories?"

"Even those memories hurt." Jack responded. "It's hurt too much to think about it and the hurt I wasn't familiar with scared me." The end tip of his lips tilted upwards into a small smirk. "You know, I still haven't thanked Pitch for those nightmares."

"Nightmares?!" Everyone else cried. "What nightmares, Jack?"

Jack winced at the volume and chuckled sheepishly, rubbing the back of his neck. "It's over now. I'm fine."

Sandy frowned and promptly started to scold him for keeping the nightmares a secret. Jack rolled his eyes in annoyance but promised to tell them whenever he got another nightmare. Jack smirked inwardly as he thought, _I won't tell them. In order for me to actually _keep _a promise, it has to be a pinky promise. Apryl learned that the hard way…_

Jack chuckled to himself as he realized that no one but little children knew that Jack only kept a promise if it was a pinky promise. He chuckled again. But then a flash appeared and someone tumbled onto the floor. Everyone blinked and drew back in surprise. They stumbled to their feet, dusting their clothes off.

"Jack!" The teenage boy caught Jack's eye and launched himself at the winter spirit. They both tumbled to the ground, laughing, as the black haired boy fiercely hugged Jack. "I'm so angry at you but so happy to see you!" Suddenly, he let go of Jack and gracefully got to his feet and glared at Jack. "You said you'd visit me _seven summers ago! _Seven, Jack! You promised!"

Jack laughed and lifted himself up. "I promised but not with my—," he cut himself off as he realized that he was about to give himself away.

"Not with what, Jack?" Sophie asked.

"It's nothing." Jack assured.

"Who are you?" Tooth asked the other young teenager.

"Great." Caleb muttered. "Another Jack replica; I thought Jamie was bad."

"Hey, I am not a replica of Jack. I am my own person! A person who is Jack's best friend." The black haired boy quipped and then promptly jumped up and punched Jack in the shoulder. "Who he ignored for seven years!"

"I did not ignore you!" Jack protested. "You were just never around, and I kept trying to find you but I never could."

"Oh, yeah, that's right." He said absentmindedly, "I was in Egypt, that's why."

"Who 're yah?" Bunny asked the other teen.

"I'm…well…I don't remember my human name," the boy explained. "But, I can blend and manipulate the shadows and darkness! So, Jack just calls me Shadow." Shadow and Jack both grinned mischievously as they remembered how they met.

"Shouldn't we get back to the memory?" Pippa asked.

"Memories?" Shadow inquired. "What are you talking about?"

Jack mumbled, "We're watching my memories."

"Oh." Shadow quieted and frowned. He knew some of Jack's past and up until he was seven, it wasn't a good one. "Where are we now?"

"After Apryl," Jack said. "Z is two."

"Oh!" Shadow smiled. "Right before Easter?"

Jack nodded and Cupcake said, "I think we're still supposed to be watching,"

Heads turned back to the bubble and the memory continued.

_Memory Jack sighed as he trudged towards the pile of chopped wood and started to put some in the fireplace and used the charcoal pieces to make a warm fire. "Jack," his mother called. "Are you here?"_

_"Yes." He responded. "I'm making the fire."_

_"Oh, Jack." His mother said sadly. "You don't have to do that, you know."_

_"I know." Jack said but he insisted, "I can do it, Mother. You have too much to do."_

_"Thank you, Jack." His mother smiled. _

_"You're welcome."_

The memory faded around Jack's face that was set in concentration as the rocks he ground together started to spark. Shadow questioned, "Mind telling me what is going on?"

Since no one else would speak up, Jack sucked in a breath and started to explain the memories that he'd missed. After Jack was finished talking, everyone was silent as they drowned in their deep thoughts.

"There's something I just don't understand, though." Pippa voiced her frustrations.

"What don't you get?" Claude asked.

It was silent after a few moments as Pippa gathered her jumbled thoughts. "How…Jack, how old are you?"

Jack replied, "I'm three hundred and seventeen years old."

"No, no." Pippa shook her head. "How old were you…when you became Jack _Frost._"

Jack froze. Shadow was snickering at his expense and said, "You'll most likely find out with the rest of us…" he trailed off, not knowing anyone's names. Names were thrown left and right with greetings of the newest addition to the room.

It was quiet for a moment until the next memory started to play.


	6. Chapter 6

_A/n: Thank you so much for the reviews last chapter! I thought so many people have forgotten or gave up on this story! Enjoy!_

_Disclaimer: _I do not own Rise of The Guardians or any of the familiar occurrences that took place in both the book series and the movie. I only own my OC's and text. This is purely for my entertainment. I also don't own any book for movie preferences. The Movie References belong to DreamWorks Corp. and their creators/creations. The Book References of the Guardians of Childhood belong to William Joyce. No copyright infringement intended.

**Warning(s): **_contains language, suggestive violent themes, mentions of starvation/malnourishment, and mentions of child abuse. Read at your own risk. _

_Chapter Six_

"Jack is still seven." Manny said.

"What is that?" Shadow cried, jumping from shock. "Jack, did you mess with the ghosts from the 1800s, again?"

Jack protested, "That was one time—and he was asking for it, anyway!"

Everyone else looked at them with incredulous looks on their faces. "That was Man in Moon." North responded. "And Jack, will we be seeing what you did to that ghost?" North had amusement in his eyes.

Jack shrugged his shoulders. "Maybe,"

_Seven-year-old Jack was holding a basket as he was walking home from a day in his job. He was whistling a jubilant tune as he walked, basking in the spring air. Jack was oblivious to the five shadows that came up behind him. He didn't hear the tiny snickers and the devious whispers that were pointed towards him. Jack kept whistling; he kept the bounce in his step; and he kept swinging his basket back and forth that was filled with eggs, bread, cheese, some napkins, and a few pastries. Jack had gotten a job in the towns' bakery and as reward and pay, one week Jack got food and the next, he got money. The baker was a nice man, who always had a soft spot for Jack's mother. Some days Jack cleaned the bakery, others he helped knead the bread and do other miscellaneous jobs his boss told him to do._

_That day was one of the days that Jack had helped bake. "Oh, look!" Jack paused briefly in his step as he heard the familiar sneer. He nearly groaned out loud. _

**_Great, _**_Jack thought. __**It's the bullies of the village. I wonder what they want now. **__Even at a young age, Jack had sarcasm down to the bullet. _

_The 'bullies of the village' consisted of four boys and a girl. The girl, whose name was Isabella, was only a tag-along and the little sister of one of the bullies. She hated what they do and whenever she tried to put a stop to it, they always hurt her. So, in order to stay bruise free, Isabella simply stayed in the guidelines and stayed quiet. Isabella had long wavy black hair that she always either kept out or in a bun. At only seven years old, she was only two inches taller than Jack, who was very short at this age, and she had sparkling light blue eyes. _

"Holy shit!" Shadow's jaw dropped. "That's…that's…holy shit…."

The others looked surprised at his vulgarity but Jack just nodded and said, "I know. My thoughts exactly,"

"What are you talking about?" Sophie cocked her head to the side.

"You'll see." Jack said. "It's about two people who are bullies, sort of."

Sophie nodded and turned back to the memory.

_"It's Little Jackie!" The eldest, Thomas, absolutely hated Jack for no reason at all. He scowled deeply when Jack didn't give him any response; the seven-year-old just kept whistling, kept walking. "I wonder what he has in that basket of his!" At this, before Jack could react, he was pushed onto the ground and his basket of food was taken away from him._

_"What the—hey, give that back, Thomas!" Jack cried as he watched Thomas spill all of the treats and food that was given to him. His cronies laughed and held a struggling Jack down as Thomas stomped on the food and spat on it. There were two figures in the background that were watching and struggling with internal arguments about whether to help him or not. _

_"Thomas! Give it back, Thomas!" The blonde boy that was holding down Jack mimicked him as Jack tried desperately to blink back his hot, salty tears. _

_"Aw." The brunette boy taunted. "The baby is crying."_

_"Leave him alone!" A female voice shouted. Heads turned to look at Isabella and momentarily, Thomas stopped his mean acts to glare at the female. "Jack has done nothing to you so…leave him be!"_

_"Leave him be?" Thomas mocked. "Oh, you want us to leave him alone. Well, fine." Thomas looked back to give his other boys a look and they smirked as they released their holds on Jack and stood behind Thomas. "We'll leave him alone." _

**_Oh no…_**_ Jack moaned in his thoughts. __**Isabella, what are you doing? They're going to turn on you now!**_

_That's exactly what they did. For a split second, there was nothing but silence as tension hovered and then there was a crack, a cry of pain, and a thud as Isabella hit the ground, clutching her face. Her tears ran freely down her face as she looked up fearfully at a laughing Thomas. _

"Did 'e jus' 'it tha' Sheila?" Bunny asked, shocked. Jack numbly nodded.

"I remember Thomas." North scowled. "Boy was always on naughty list."

_Once again, an ire filled haze rained down on Jack just like it did when he was dealing with his father and his older sisters' death. Before he could understand what he was doing exactly, he heard snaps, cracks, and shrieks, and thuds and when the fog had dispersed, Thomas and his two cronies were on the ground, clutching their broken noses, arms, and legs as they stared with horrified expressions up at Jack who had his fists clenched and bloody with a fierce scowl and something dark that gleamed in his eyes._

_"Don't you __**ever**__ touch her again," Jack threatened. "Or I swear, I'll blind you next time."_

_Thomas and his two friends nodded and promptly proceeded to scramble to their feet and scurry away. Jack jumped a bit in shock as small hands wrapped around him and pulled him into a tight hug. _

_"Thank you, Jack." Isabella whispered._

_Jack nodded. "It's alright." Isabella let go of Jack and stood near her brother, who proceeded to give Jack a nod before turning away and walking in the other direction. Isabella rolled her eyes and said, "Ignore my brother. He's awkward around people. He's also sorry for the things he'd done in the past. I am too."_

_Jack nodded. "It's okay; it's all forgiven."_

_"Well…" Isabella smiled warmly at him. "I'll see you soon, Jack."_

_Jack nodded and gave her a smile back. Once Isabella was out of view, Jack sighed and looked at the ground for pieces of food that could be saved. From what he could savage, he had six eggs left, two loaves of bread, and four pieces of pastries. He smiled at what he could save and calculated that the food could last them almost a full week. _

_He grinned as he continued his walk home, bounce back in his step, and whistling tune returned. _

"Wait, wait, wait! It can't be over yet!" Shadow cried. "I need to know the dudes name!"

"What dude?" Jamie asked.

"Isabella's brother! I need to know his name!" Shadow responded. "And age."

"There are more memories, you know." Monty told him. "You'll figure it out soon enough."

"Why do you care, anyway?" Cupcake questioned, voicing everyone else's thoughts.

"Because Isabella's brother is me!" Shadow said. "That's me, damn it!"

"Ok, who gave you sugar?" Jack raised an eyebrow and Shadow snorted in reply, grinned sheepishly.

Jack let out a chuckle before everyone turned their attention back towards the next memory.


	7. Chapter 7

_A/n: Thank you so much for the reviews last chapter! I thought so many people have forgotten or gave up on this story! Enjoy! I think some people are getting confused between Shadow's age from when he was human and when he is a spirit now; Shadow is older than Jack in the past and in the now…if my explanation makes sense or helps with anyone's confusion. Also, I've decided that there will be around four more memories of Jack's human life and then I'll write the memories of him as Jack Frost._

_Disclaimer: _I do not own Rise of The Guardians or any of the familiar occurrences that took place in both the book series and the movie. I only own my OC's and text. This is purely for my entertainment. I also don't own any book for movie preferences. The Movie References belong to DreamWorks Corp. and their creators/creations. The Book References of the Guardians of Childhood belong to William Joyce. No copyright infringement intended.

**Warning(s): **_contains language, suggestive violent themes, mentions of starvation/malnourishment, and mentions of child abuse. Read at your own risk. _

_Chapter Seven_

"Now, Jack is ten." Manny said.

_"Jack, get down from there!" Isabella looked up at Jack, who was hanging upside down from a tree. Zinnia, who was now five years old, was giggling uncontrollably as Isabella's older brother, Jamie, was tickling her, trying to keep her attention away from Jack as he was dangerously hanging from the tree. _

_"Jamie can only hold your sisters' attention for so long," She hissed lowly. _

"My name was Jamie?" Shadow frowned. "I like Shadow better."

"Hey, we have the same name!" Jamie grinned at Shadow.

"You know, you look very familiar now that I look at you in Jack's memory." Pippa told Shadow as she tilted her head to the side curiously.

Shadow raised an eyebrow but didn't respond.

_Jack rolled his eyes. "I don't see what the problem is." He stubbornly crossed his arms over his chest. "I'm just hanging around!" Jack laughed at the cliché pun._

_Isabella, despite her frustration and anger at him, chuckled. "Yeah; yeah. But you could still get hurt! I don't want to explain to your mother that you broke another limb from hanging upside down on a tree."_

_Jack sighed but grudgingly came down from the big oak tree. "You're no fun, Bella."_

_Isabella stuck her tongue out at Jack and he complied. "Jack! Jack!" Zinnia skipped towards her older brother and tugged on his trousers. "Food! Food!" Over the years, Zinnia developed a slight speech disorder. She had trouble speaking in large sentences but it could easily be helped. _

_"Alright," Jack said before he picked her up and rested her on his hip. "I guess it's time to go home. Bye Bella, Bye Jamie!" Jamie and Isabella said their goodbyes before they walked towards their own home and Jack and Zinnia went to theirs._

**_Life is good, so far. _**_ Jack thought. __**I finally have some friends and Thomas and his crew finally left me alone. I haven't seen my dad since he was sent somewhere up north. I hope that I'll never see him again.**_

_Jack and Zinnia entered their home and it was eerily silent. Jack helped Zinnia with her coat and boots and she scrambled towards the living room where her doll was lying on the couch. Jack didn't like the silence and he grabbed his fathers' old Shepard's' crook as a defense weapon. _

"Hey, it's your staff!" Tooth pointed with a grin on her face. Jack nodded.

**_I don't like this silence. _**_ Jack thought. __**Where is my mother?**_

_Jack slowly crept through his house with Zinnia's laughter and banter emerging from the living room as she played with her toys. Jack breathed in deeply before he stepped into the kitchen. _

_"Alright…" Derisively, Jack mumbled to himself. "This isn't creepy at all."_

_Jack turned back around and walked towards his mother's room and slowly opened the door. It creaked as it moved and Jack breathed in deeply once more before he looked around. Furniture was turned upwards or destroyed into bits. His mothers' room was a mess, there was that haunting red stuff that splattered the floors and walls and furniture. _

_Fear settled into Jack as he shuffled inside of the room, hands gripping his staff tightly against his chest. He followed a trail of blood which led to his mothers' private room that he was told to never enter. He pushed it open and he peered into the darkness as his fear scaled up levels he couldn't understand. _

_Jack's eyes widened and his face paled. The last thing heard was Jack's blood-curling scream. _

_"Mum!"_

The memory stopped and Tooth fluttered towards the spirit. "Jack, what happened?" She cried.

"Did she…is she…" Shadow trailed, pointing towards the bubble. Jack nodded glumly and Shadow gulped. "How…"

"You'll see…" Jack whispered in a tiny voice.

"Will your mom be alright?" Caleb asked.

Jack didn't respond and before they knew it, the next memory had started.

* * *

_A/n: Thanks for all of your support with this story! Also, can you guys tell me if this is a good story idea and if you would read it:_

* * *

**Innocent Shadows**

It's about a child winter spirit that is kidnapped by Pitch and has been held captive for more than two hundred years. No one knows about her except MiM. It's very sad, very descriptive, and has a lot of angst and depression at some points in the story.

* * *

_Also, one more thing, I have put up a one-shot called Iced Perfection: check it out! _


	8. Chapter 8

_A/n: thanks for all of the reviews, favors, and follows last chapter! By the way, Jack's mother isn't dead. You'll see and understand what happened to her in this chapter. Also, sorry for the short chapter last chapter. I was rushing and only wrote down what was going on in my head. So, I hope you enjoy this one! Please review, follow, and favorite. _

_Disclaimer: _I do not own Rise of The Guardians or any of the familiar occurrences that took place in both the book series and the movie. I only own my OC's and text. This is purely for my entertainment. I also don't own any book for movie preferences. The Movie References belong to DreamWorks Corp. and their creators/creations. The Book References of the Guardians of Childhood belong to William Joyce. No copyright infringement intended.

**Warning(s): **_contains language, suggestive violent themes, mentions of starvation/malnourishment, and mentions of child abuse. Read at your own risk. _

_Chapter Eight_

"Jack is still ten." Manny said.

_"Jack, does your mother have any recent…suitors?" The towns' midwife raised an eyebrow in question at Jack, who looked perplexed at the question. He shook his head and stayed silent. He was still shaken up by the bloody mess of that disgusting red stuff that was pooling around his mothers' legs and abdomen. He was confused and didn't know what to do. His estate was too far away from the village. _

_Times like this, Jack cursed his father for building their home so far away. _

_The midwife pursed her lips. "Well, Jack, it seems that your mother has miscarried. That's why there was so much blood."_

_Jack was just lucky that the midwife was already on her way to Jack's house for some afternoon tea with his mother. Jack jolted out of his thoughts at the foreign word. "…blood…" The word tasted weird on his tongue. "Was that the red stuff?"_

_The midwife nodded. "Yes, Jack. That's blood."_

**_Blood…now where have I seen that b—, _**_Memory Jack thought. __**Blood…Apryl…dead…kill…father….kill…Apryl…dead….Apr yl…blood…blood…b—don't think about it, Jack! Don't. Think. About. Apryl. **_

_Jack sucked in a breath as the unfamiliar hurt swirled in his system. The midwife's back was to him so she didn't see Jack clutch his chest as he panted and gasped silently as if he were gulping for air. As fast as the hurt came, it went. _

"You…you now found out what blood looks like?" Shadow raised an eyebrow at Jack, who, in return, scowled at him.

"Oh, well, at least your mother isn't, you know, dead." Tooth breathed out a sigh of relief.

"What happened to her, though?" Sophie asked.

"She had a miscarriage." Cupcake responded.

"Which is?" Sophie asked again.

"It's when you lose the baby." Pippa responded. Sophie was silent after that.

_"Jack! Jack! Jack!" Zinnia shouted. Jack gave the midwife a tiny smile before scrambling towards his impatient little tyke of a sister. Once Zinnia saw Jack, she pounced on him. Her tiny arms squeezed around Jack's torso as she sobbed quietly. "Mama okay?"_

_"She's going to be alright, Zin." Jack smiled down at the child before ruffling up her head. "Don't worry, Zinnia. Hey, enough of this sad stuff. You want me to tell you a story? It's naptime anyway."_

_Zinnia's face brightened as Jacked picked her up properly. She clapped her hands excitedly, "Yay! Yay! Yay! Story! Story! Story! Story! Yay!" _

_Jack chuckled as he carried Zinnia towards their room. _

"She's so adorable!" Tooth, and all of the other females in the group, shrieked.

"Jamie," Pippa leaned towards Jamie and whispered, "I still want one." She smirked in success when Jamie stuttered and fumbled with his words, turning beet red at what she was implying at.

_Once Zinnia was tucked in and comfortable with her old, straw stuffed doll, she looked expectantly up at Jack. "Okay, well…let's see, where should I start…" Jack smiled toothily at his little sister before he breathed in deeply and began._

_"There was a kingdom called…" Jack started but trailed off as he couldn't remember the name._

_"Tooth!" Zinnia offered. "Tooth!" _

_"Where'd you get that idea from?" Jack asked._

_"Tooth!" Zinnia insisted. "Tooth Fairy! Tooth!" _

Tooth squealed at the mention of her.

_Jack laughed. "Alright. Well, in the kingdom called Tooth, there was a queen, a king, and two princes, and an evil sorcerer. The kingdom was filled with laughter, and magic, and happiness. No one cries, no one d-dies," Jack gulped in a breath but continued for the sake of his little sister. "And life is perfect. Their queen is a fairy, she's the most beautiful lady in the land. She also had an obsession with teeth like-,"_

_He was interrupted by happy squeals, "Tooth! Tooth! Tooth! Tooth Fairy! Tooth Fairy! Tooth!" _

_Jack laughed boisterously, his eyes shining as he looked at Zinnia, who, instead of lying down, was sitting up and bouncing in her seat. "Yes, just like the tooth fairy." Jack said. "And the king was a large, tall man who had blue eyes and a white beard. He had a loud laugh and was always smiling. He had pets, too. He reminded every child in the kingdom of-,"_

_"Santa! Santa! Santa Claus! Santa!" Zinnia squealed. "Elves! Elves! Elves!"_

_"Yup, there were little people like the elves, too." Jack nodded his head. "Anyway, and the two princes were like brothers. The older one had a nickname, bunny," _

"You know…" Jamie said, "This is starting to feel like a very familiar story."

_"And Bunny, like the Easter bunny, loved Easter and always made Easter treats and chocolates, despite his mothers' dislike of sugar, and always hid it for the children. But the other prince, he was short and the youngest. His favorite color was gold. Every day before bedtime, little children always surrounded him and he told stories to them, which turned into dreams whenever they slept. He got the nickname S-."_

_"Sandman!" Zinnia nodded her head. "Sandy!"_

_"Yup! They called him Sandman, they called Bunny…well…Bunny, they called the king Santa, and they called the queen Tooth Fairy. But they all had an enemy. He was dark and sinister and evil. No one liked him. He was all alone in the world and he grew hateful and didn't speak to anyone unless he was putting a curse on them. He scared little kids and some say, that he thrived on fear._

The others gasped. "Pitch," Tooth seethed.

"You know, I wonder where you've heard this." Shadow asked.

_"They called him the Boogey man. Legend says, that he hides under beds." _

_Zinnia gasped. "No!"_

_"Yes!" Jack mimicked her incredulous look. "But, don't worry. The Queen, King, and Princes of the kingdom Tooth protected the children from him, and from then came the Guardians."_

_"Of what?" Zinnia inquired._

_"Their the Guardians of Childhood." Jack grinned. "The Queen is the Guardian of Memories, the King is the Guardian of…of…" _

_"Wonder!" Zinnia grinned but then frowned, "what's wonder?"_

_"I'll tell you later." Jack ruffled up her hair. "But, okay. He's the Guardian of Wonder, and Bunny is the Guardian of Hope, and Sandy is the Guardian of Dreams."_

_"Boogeyman?" Zinnia tilted her head to the side._

_Jack shrugged. "I guess he's the Guardian of Fear or Nightmares. It does make sense."_

"An' yah made all this up in yah head?" Bunny asked Jack, who nodded.

"I had a wild imagination." He murmured.

_"Anyway," Jack continued. "One night, the Boogeyman stole something that didn't belong to him. He stole the Queen's most precious gift."_

_"Teeth!" Zinnia said, pointing to her own. _

_Jack nodded. "Yes, he crept into the castle at night and stole the teeth sculptures."_

_They weren't aware of the yellow eyes that were staring at them. "But, as he was going back to his home, a child saw him and followed him. No one paid attention to this child; he was alone, too. He wore brown pants, and a blue shirt, but he didn't have any shoes. He was a Shepard, so he was holding a crook in his hands. But, since he was alone, no one gave him a name. He was curious as to what the evil man was doing and once he found out, he informed the Guards…_

_"But no one believed him and they called him a liar. Until the Queen woke up and saw that the teeth was gone."_

"Can someone say repeating history much?" Jamie said.

_"Since no one was listening, the boy made his way to the lair to demand back the teeth sculptures. The man knew the boys' fears and he used it against the boy. The next morning, a battle raged. The boogeyman was holding the boy as a hostage, as leverage against the kingdom. The bad man was fighting against the king, queen, and the princes. The man had his evil minions, and the royal family had their good ones. The battle lasted all day and once nightfall hit, the evil man had fallen. _

_"The boy was saved as he gave the teeth sculptured back to the queen but she allowed him to keep one, for remembrance of what he'd done. They found out he didn't have a family and that he was alone and they adopted him. The boy had a family, and he finally got a name."_

_"Name?" Zinnia mumbled tiredly. "What…name?"_

_"They named him Frost." Jack said. "Because he loved the frost designs whenever winter came, not to mention it was his favorite season. And they became a family, and they were finally happy."_

_"Question…" Zinnia said._

_"What is it?" Jack asked._

_She struggled to make a sentence, but she wasn't going to give up. "If…If…the…boogey…man…was…real…would…you…be…afraid …of…him?"_

_Jack looked overjoyed at the long sentence, no matter the pauses. Jack thought about it and responded, "No. I wouldn't be afraid of him. If he is real, I'd believe. But just because I believe, doesn't mean I have to fear."_

_But Zinnia was fast asleep and the yellow eyes had gone._


	9. Chapter 9

_A/n: Honestly, I have no idea where the story from last chapter came from. I just wrote whatever was in my head. Anyway, thanks for all of the reviews, favors, and follows. I'm going to start either a story or a one-shot collection-story. I haven't decided which, yet. Anyway, sorry for any errors. Hope you enjoy this chapter! Please review, favorite, and follow!_

_Disclaimer: _I do not own Rise of The Guardians or any of the familiar occurrences that took place in both the book series and the movie. I only own my OC's and text. This is purely for my entertainment. I also don't own any book for movie preferences. No copyright infringement intended.

**Warning(s): **_contains language, suggestive violent themes, mentions of starvation/malnourishment, and mentions of child abuse. Read at your own risk. _

_Chapter Nine_

"Jack is now twelve." Manny said.

The Guardians, Shadow, and the children of Burgess were staring at Jack's living room.

_Jack's living room was decorated with anything and everything related to Christmas. There was a soft blizzard blowing outside and Jack and Zinnia were sitting in front of the hearth. It was silent in the house, since their mother was on the couch sleeping. _

_Zinnia was six, turning seven soon, and she was speaking in full sentences. "Jack," She said, catching her older brothers' attention. "I'm hungry. When can we eat?"_

"What?" Normally, it would've been Tooth to have shrieked, but it wasn't. It was Sophie, and she looked downright furious. "Your mother is sleeping and you guys' haven't eaten yet? What kind of mother is that?"

Jack blinked and looked at Sophie with a surprised expression. She giggled at his wide-eyes. "What?" She said innocently. "And hey, you're my age in this!"

Jack rolled his eyes but then muttered underneath his breath, "Be happy you can actually age even more than I was even allowed too."

"What's with the shortage of memories?" Shadow questioned.

"If we're looking at the memories from Jack's baby teeth," Tooth explained. "Then, we're only seeing his most precious memories, the ones that are the most important. I'm thinking that Manny will show us Jack's memories as an Immortal."

Shadow nodded, satisfied that his question was answered but then he said, "Hey, I still never got to know my age!"

Jack sighed, chuckled, and then told him, "When I was twelve, you were fifteen."

"So…how old am I now?" Shadow asked. Jack shrugged and everyone looked at him curiously.

_Jack sighed and licked his chapped lips. "When Mother wakes up, we'll…we'll eat."_

_"Do you promise?" Zinnia looked so hopeful, Jack was ashamed to lie. Jack opened his mouth to fib again but Zinnia stopped him as she said, "Wait, do you pinky promise?" she held out her pinky. _

"What's tha' deal with you an' pinky promises, Jack?" Bunny asked. Jack's eyes widened, and he, mentally, cursed this particularly memory for giving away his secret. It was kind of funny, and childish, how Jack would only keep a promise if it were a pinky promise. Then again, Jack was the only immortal child.

_Jack faltered and couldn't help but scowl playfully at his little sister. She giggled at his face. Jack sighed deeply before he said, "You got me." Pinkies were locked and Zinnia looked pleased to know that Jack was actually going to keep the promise._

**_I should've known Zinnia would catch onto my pinky promises and my other promises. _**_Jack thought. __**If there are no pinkies with the promise, I don't keep it. If there are pinkies, I do. Then again, she is my little sister. Of course she'd figure it out. **_

"Aw, that's adorable!" The girls squealed once again. Failingly, Jack looked around for escape routes again.

"So, if you pinky promise, you keep the promise?" Jamie asked, though it was more like a statement. "No wonder when I was younger and I always asked for snow days and made you promise, it was always with a pinky! I just shrugged it off."

Jack chuckled but was then assaulted with dream sand images in his face as Sandy was at eyesight with him on his cloud of golden dream sand. Jack was lost as to what the little guy was trying to day.

"I'm thinking he's telling you to pinky promise that you'll tell us whenever you have another nightmare." Cupcake responded. Jack gulped.

Tooth figured it out and steamed, "Jack Frost!" Jack winced. "Were you not going to tell us if you had another nightmare?"

Jack had the nerve to look sheepish when he nodded. _She's reminding me of a mother scolding there misbehaving child—oh. _Jack blinked and looked at Tooth as realization dawned over him. _Oh…oh…wow, I am so slow…_

A chuckle slipped out of his mouth and both North and Tooth yelled, "It is not funny, Jack!"

_And now they're both acting like they're my parents—oh. What's next, me finally figuring out that Bunny is being my big brother? _Jack mused. _You know what, Jack? Don't jinx anything. _

"You can yell at Jack later," Pippa said. "For now, let's just watch his memories."

Sophie suddenly squealed, "I can't wait to see how this Man in the Moon chose you to be Jack Frost."

"And why you look so…young." Tooth pondered. "I mean, Manny must've waited for you to change into adulthood until he chose you. Did you want to be changed back to a 16-17 year old?"

_I bet its' my voice that's throwing them off, isn't it? I just had to pick the day of my death before I altered through puberty properly. _Sarcastically, Jack said to himself. But he spoke, "You'll see."

"Well, okay." Tooth fluttered her wings nervously as she hovered from behind Jack protectively.

_Jack sighed and Zinnia was playing contently with her doll. He scanned his mind for ways to distract his little sister from the hunger. The only thing was snow and it was still storming outside, whether it was a light snowfall or not, he didn't want to risk anything with her. He sighed again before looking back at his mother, who had, once again, passed out. _

_Jack didn't know what was wrong with her but he didn't pry. Ever since the day she had lost a child she didn't know she even carried, she'd been acting weird and introvert, not to mention highly sad. His eyes brightened as he thought of something that might work. "Hey, Zinnia?" Jack caught her attention. "What did you ask Santa for Christmas?"_

_Zinnia squealed with excitement. "I asked for a new doll! What did you ask for?"_

_"Some ice skates." Jack smiled. "Jamie said he'd teach Isabella and I how to skate."_

"Ah, so it is Christmas!" North beamed and then smirked at Bunny, who rolled his eyes in annoyance.

"I know how to skate?" Shadow blinked. "Then how come whenever I try, I always fall?"

Jack tried his best to hide his snickering. Shadow's eyes narrowed as he turned his head to glare at his younger, laughing friend. "Jack," He said in a low voice.

"I'm sorry, really, I am. I just could never resist." Jack laughed and then smirked at him once he calmed down and saw the glare. "What? It's fun."

_"That's nice of him but when you know how to skate, can you teach me?" Zinnia tilted her head to the side as she asked the question._

_Jack smiled and nodded, "Alright, it's no problem. I'd love to teach you." _

_Zinnia beamed at Jack who chuckled and ruffled up her head playfully. Jack stared long and hard into the fire and he smiled softly as he murmured underneath his breath, "Merry Christmas, Apryl." _


	10. Chapter 10

_A/n: Thanks so much for all of the reviews, favorites, and follows. But, even though I could write more of Jack's human memories, I have nothing left in my imagination right now. So, this chapter is Jack's death. This chapter is also dedicated to my grandfather, who has recently passed (7/23). I'm also so very sorry to keep everyone waiting for such a long period of time. I was mourning and I also had online school to deal with and now I'm actually enrolled in an actual high school (9__th__ grade! I'm so excited!) and I'll be going to school on Monday, the 19__th__, so updates might be going a bit slower. Don't worry, I'm not giving up on this story at all, I just have a shortage of words and imagination right now. I'm also considering doing a collection of one-shots as a sequel to this story. I'm thinking It'll be fun. Also, does anyone know what "drabbles" and "arcs" mean? I'm lost with those whenever I see it. _

_Disclaimer: _I do not own Rise of The Guardians or any of the familiar occurrences that took place in both the book series and the movie. I only own my OC's and text. This is purely for my entertainment. I also don't own any book for movie preferences. The Movie References belong to DreamWorks Corp. and their creators/creations. The Book References of the Guardians of Childhood belong to William Joyce. No copyright infringement intended.

**Warning(s): **_contains language, suggestive violent themes, mentions of starvation/malnourishment, and mentions of child abuse, and death. Read at your own risk. _

_Chapter Ten_

"Jack is fourteen." Manny said, his voice unexpectedly soft and grave.

"I wonder what this memory is going to be about." Sophie squealed with excitement.

Jack knew what memory this was and he stayed absolutely silent.

_"Jack! Jack! Wake up! Wake up!" Zinnia had grown. She was now nine years old and she was jumping on a sleeping Jack. "Wake up! Wake up! You promised we'd go skating today!"_

_Jack groaned before blinking lazily at his sister. "What…?" _

_Zinnia huffed with impatience. "Wake up, Jack! We're going ice skating today, remember?" _

_Jack blinked again before he nodded and grinned widely. "I'll be there soon. Go get your skates."_

_Zinnia squealed with excitement before racing out of their room, grabbing her skates. A few moments later, Jack appeared with his skates slung over his shoulder. Zinnia caught sight of her brother and grabbed his wrist, eagerly pulling him towards the door._

_"Whoa, calm down there, little lady." Jack laughed. "I have to tell Mother we'll be leaving."_

_"I already know." Jack turned around to see his mother grinning softly at them. "Be back before sundown, please, okay?"_

_Jack nodded. He laughed again when Zinnia pulled him towards their door. He smiled at her softly. "Be careful!" His mother called from the doorway. _

_Jack laughed as he said, "We will!" he kept looking back a couple of times, as though he were subconsciously trying to remember his mothers' face. _

"Cool!" Claude grinned. "I bet we'll see Jack's wicked skills on the ice."

North frowned. He wasn't sure why this memory was upsetting. But he could feel that something bad was about to happen. He could feel it in his belly.

The scene changed and instead of seeing Jack and Zinnia having fun on the ice, they were staring at Jack's brown orbs as he was putting his skates down.

_"Hey, it's okay. It's okay." Jack soothed his trembling little sister. "D-Don't look down, just look at me." _

_"Jack," Zinnia cried. "I'm scared." Ice cracked underneath her from the pressure of her weight. Jack took a step but ice cracked underneath his foot as well and he winced. He knew panicking and being afraid would get him and Zinnia no where. _

_"It's okay. You're going…you're going to be fine." Jack promised. "And you're not going to fall in." Jack was frustrated. He was supposed to protect his little sister, not put her in danger! "We're…we're going to have a little fun instead!" he smiled crookedly, trying so hard to get his sister to believe in him._

Everyone's hearts were thumping wildly as they awaited for the memory to end. "You said that to me when I was nine, and we were fighting against Pitch." Jamie pointed out. Jack nodded.

"Oh, Jack!" Tooth cried before hugging him. "I'm so sorry about your sister!" Jack clenched his jaw but stayed silent.

"She lived a good life." Monty put in his own two cents and everyone nodded in agreement.

_Zinnia sobbed, "No we're not!" She could see the hopelessness in her older brother's eyes and fear wrapped her into a hug as she stood there, a web of cracks echoing underneath her._

_"Would I trick you?" Jack asked, trying to keep the fear away from showing on his face. He gave another tentative smile towards his sister._

_"Yes! You always play tricks!" She sobbed again. Jack was determined to get his sister to safety, even if he didn't survive in the end._

_He laughed nervously. "Well not…not this time." He was hesitant with his words as he tried to shuffle closer to his sister but the ice cracked again. He gulped. "I promise, I promise, you're going to be…you're gonna be fine."_

Tooth squeezed Jack tighter.

_"You have to believe in me."_

Sobs broke out of everyone's mouth as they watched. Many times had they not believed in Jack.

_Zinnia had complete and utter trust in her eyes as she looked up at her brother. He would get her out of here, if anyone knew how to get out of situations like this, it was him. "Hey…you wanna play a game?" He asked with a playful, light tone. "We're gonna play hopscotch, like we play everyday." He smiled brightly with confidence when he observed his sisters' eyes lighting up._

_"Um, it's as easy as one…" He started, taking a step but he flinched when the ice cracked. He took a peak at his sister and put on a comical, playful face as he flailed his arms around comically, faking losing his step, "Whoa!" and made his sister laugh. _

_"Two…" the ice didn't crack as much. "Three!" Jack hopped to the thicker part of the ice and exhaled as he grabbed his Shepard's crook. He held out the curved end towards Zinnia. "Now, it's your turn!"_

_"One…" Zinnia took a timid step forward and gasped loudly when the ice cracked dangerously. "That's it…that's it…two…" Panic was starting to build up in Jack's eyes as the ice kept cracking and Zinnia was taking her steps with gasps. She glanced up at her brother. _

_"Three!" Jack reached out before the ice could collapse and hooked his sister around the waist with the end of his staff and pulled her to safety as she skidded on the thicker part of the ice._

They all laughed and cheered gleefully but then stopped once they saw Jack's solemn expression.

_Jack stumbled slightly and Zinnia looked up at Jack with a beaming smile but then both their smiles dropped and fear flooded in Jack's expression._

_Crack. _

_"Jack!" Zinnia screamed right as the ice broke and Jack plunged into the freezing waters. _

"No!" Tooth choked on a sob as she yelled. She was holding Jack in a death grip right now.

"You…you only died at…at fourteen!" Sophie exclaimed. "In two years, I'll be your age."

Everyone shuffled towards Jack, grabbing him in their arms for a comforting hug. "Can't…breathe…" Jack choked out. He was released by all the arms but they still stayed, surrounding him, giving him concerned gazes. The scene of the memory had shifted once again.

**_Darkness. That's the first thing I remembered. It was dark, it was cold, and I was scared. _**_ Jack was floating underneath the water, moonbeams shined. __**But then…then I saw the moon, and it was so big and so bright. **__Jack was lifted from the frozen water and was high in the air. He gasped out a breath, looking up at the moon, slightly tilting his head to the side as he observed the large luminescent moon in his view. __**And then, then I wasn't scared anymore. **__Jack blinked; surprised at the ice that froze immediately once he stepped on it. He took his first step as an immortal, stumbling. __**Why I was here and what I was meant to do, I'd never know. And maybe, I never will. **_

_Jack's toe touched the staff he used to save his sister and he crouched down, picking it up in his hands as frost-fern-like designs spread. Jack flinched and dropped the staff in surprise. It hit the ice and created a beautiful, unique pattern of frost that webbed around the ice. Jack's eyes lit up as he observed the stick of wood and then walked towards some trees. He timidly touched one and smiled as the fern-like design blossomed onto the base of the tree. He turned and touched the other tree adjacent to him and pressed his fingers against it, jumping on the balls of his feet with his face lighting up with excitement and happiness as he ran around the pond, his staff touching the ground as he skated over the ice, creating frost-like patterns. _

_Wind blew and lifting him up, which made him gasp and shout in surprise. Wind released him playfully and he fell downwards, slamming into a tree. He clutched onto a branch and laughed, with a smile on his face._

"That was one fall." Pippa muttered.

_He hopped onto his toes and something caught his attention. He looked over and saw a fire from a village. _

Tooth gasped as she realized what was about to happen. "Oh, Jack." She wrapped the fourteen-year-old immortal in her arms once again.

_"Wh-Whoa!" Jack was clumsy as he rode the wind and he collapsed into a snowdrift. He laughed as he wiped off snow from his cloak. He passed by villagers, saying polite greetings. "Hello." "Hello." "Hello, Ma'am…Ma'am?" a dog barked as it passed by Jack, he turned to see a little boy giggling and running after the dog. Jack knelt down to the child's height and said, "Excuse me, can you tell me where I—," Jack was cut off when the child had passed through him. He gasped as pain tingled over his entire body, he clutched the front of his shirt where his heart is and gasped. _

_"Hello?" He looked around wildly for anyone that could hear him. "Hello?" people passed through him as if he…wasn't truly there. _

**_My name is Jack Frost. How do I know that? _**_Jack slowly started to walk towards the forest. __**The Moon told me so. And that was a long, long time ago.**_

The memory faded to white and it was awfully silent in the room as everyone had tears in their eyes as they all understood that they had left Jack, the only immortal child, alone for three-hundred-years. Everyone, except Jack, shared a look with one another and they silently promised that they would protect Jack and give him the love of a family that he so desperately needed and wanted.


	11. Chapter 11

_A/N: Holy Shitake Mushrooms! One of my most favorite authors reviewed this story *cough* *cough* LaurenJr *cough* *cough*! (Excuse me while I go scream into my pillow-XD) Ahem, anyway, back to the matter at hand, thanks so much for all of the reviews, favorites, and follows! Chapter 11 and the start of Jack's Immortal Memories! Lets hope that my muse doesn't run out dry with ideas! I'm thinking that I might have around 15-20 chapters of this story. Don't worry; I'm definitely not giving up this story. What kind of person would I be if I did? Lol. Please review, follow, and favorite! Also, thanks to everyone who took the time to explain what a drabble and an arc was. I gladly appreciate it. (also, 2 updates in one day!)_

_Disclaimer: _I do not own Rise of The Guardians or any of the familiar occurrences that took place in both the book series and the movie. I only own my OC's and text. This is purely for my entertainment. I also don't own any book for movie Movie References belong to DreamWorks Corp. and their creators/creations. The Book References of the Guardians of Childhood belong to William Joyce. No copyright infringement intended.

**Warning(s): **_contains language, suggestive violent themes, mentions of depression. Read at your own risk. _

_Chapter Eleven_

"Jack is a twenty years old in his immortal years." Manny said, his tone was slightly bitter like he tasted something unpleasant.

A dark look plastered onto Jack's face as he understood what was going to be revealed in this chapter. One was a distant fear of his, the other was Pitch appearing. On a good note, he met his two best friends.

_Jack was walking on a rooftop with his staff resting on both of his shoulders as he held it. The moon wasn't shining as brightly as it usually does but at least it was there. Suddenly, clouds pushed themselves forward and blocked the moon and Jack was surrounded by darkness. Jack gulped slightly as he looked around, with nothing but lampshades that were lit dimly as snowflakes softly fell to the ground. _

_Jack continued walking and hopping from one roof to the other, whistling a tune to keep himself occupied and to chase away the silence and shadows. He could feel his heart thumping madly. He didn't know when he grew into his fear but it emerged whenever nighttime came._

**_It's not like I'm scared, no, not at all. _**_Jack thought to himself. __**It's just…the shadows…I don't like them.**_

_Jack sighed deeply before he perched himself on the rooftop._

"You're afraid of the dark." Sophie's eyes widened at realization. Jack laughed nervously.

"I-I know." He looked down at his feet. "Stupid, right? Same with the pinky promises."

"I don't think it's stupid." Sophie rested her hand on his shoulder, Jack looked at her and at her comforting smile. "It's completely normal. If it makes you feel any better," Sophie leaned forward, telling Jack a secret. "Don't tell anyone, but I still sleep with my baby blanket."

Jack cracked a tiny smile. "Thanks, Sophie."

"No problem, Jack." She grinned, looking so much like Zinnia, it wasn't even funny.

Jack blinked away those thoughts. He'd search up his sisters' descendents later.

_"And who might you be?" Whether he wanted to admit it or not, Jack literally jumped twenty feet in the air from the voice that came out of nowhere. Jack drifted downwards slightly, his staff gripped in his hands defensively, as he looked around, searching for the culprit._

_"Hello?" His voice echoed. _

_"Oh, so you're the new winter spirit?" The voice returned. _

_"Who are you?" Jack asked. "What are you?" He wasn't even thrilled that this strange person could see, hear, and speak to him. He got over that when he met the Summer Sprites, evil little things that's what they were though the Spirit Of Summer was a very nice girl, though she was stubborn and fierce when she wanted to be. _

"Pitch." Bunny snarled. "When I get mah 'ands on 'im, 'e's gonna regret eva hurtin' yah, Frostbite!"

"Aw." A bitter smile was on Jack's lips. "You do care."

"Course I do." Bunny grumbled.

"Did he hurt you, Jack?" Tooth flew up close in Jack's bubble and then started to look over Jack as if he had injuries from three hundred years ago.

"Tooth…Tooth!" Jack assured her. "I am fine, really."

Tooth nodded but still hovered by Jack in a motherly way as they continued to watch the memory.

_"Most know me as the boogeyman." Yellow eyes peered into the vast darkness as an ice-chilling fear entered Jack's system and it made his stomach drop. "Though, I go by Pitch Black now. And, who might you be?"_

_Jack gulped as he saw Pitch's smirk. "Jack, Jack Frost." His voice wasn't wavering, wasn't showing the fear that coursed through his veins at the moment. He hated the darkness and all of its' evil creatures that lurked and swam in it. Apparently, this "boogeyman" was included in that category. _

"I remember this." Shadow whispered and then looked at Jack, who nodded in confirmation. Shadow gritted his teeth, he remembered this perfectly. It was the day he and his other best friend had met Jack. They became three peas in a pod. Inseparable. But it was how they had met that irked Shadow.

_"Such a very delicious fear." Pitch smiled creepily as he emerged from the darkness._

_Jack lost his footing a bit but hovered midair. He wanted to leave but something was making him stay…no…not something, someone._

_"What?" Jack laughed. "What are you talking about?"_

_Pitch chuckled. "Why, your obvious fear." A sinister look crossed Pitch's face. "The fear of the dark. Such irony, really."_

"You're afraid of the dark?" Tooth's eyes widened and everyone stared at Jack, who was peering at his feet as if they were the most interesting thing in the world.

_"Hey!" A feminine voice rang through the night. "Get away from him!" out of nowhere, an arrow whizzed past Pitch and he jumped out of the way, turning to the side as more arrows flew in his direction. Pitch scowled before glancing at Jack one last time before slinking back into the shadows. _

_"Glad he's gone." Another voice said, though this one seemed to be right next to Jack. "He's a real nightmare, isn't he?"_

_Jack whirled around. __**I think I've gone mad. I'm hearing way too many voices. Is this normal for a Spirit?**_

_"Hi, there." He heard a buzzing noise and before he knew it, there was a teenage girl hovering in front of him. She looked around seventeen-years-old, wearing a silver and red attire with tight dark red jeans, a silver colored tank top, and her bows and quiver were in the colors of red and silver mixed together. She wore silver flats. She had a crossbow and a quiver strapped to her back. She also had curly black hair that fell gently down her shoulder and mid-back in perfect ringlets and waves. "I'm Bella." _

_"Jack." He introduced himself. "Are…are…what just happened?"_

_"That was Pitch." The male voice emerged again, making Jack look around for where said voice was located. "I hate him." From a ripple of darkness, a figure appeared. It was Shadow, who was wearing all black clothing. He grinned at Jack. "Hello."_

_"What's your name?" Jack asked, his fingers still tense around his staff. _

_He shrugged. "I don't remember my name. I think it started with a J…but Bella here just calls me whatever nickname she's picked for the day so…"_

_"Well, what kind of Spirit are you?" Jack asked._

_"I'm a Dawn Spirit." Bella grinned. "Hence the color scheme. I give dawn to the end of the day. From what I've gathered, I'm the only Dawn Spirit or Spirit of Dawn there is, I'm also an Evening Spirit."_

_Shadow chuckled. "Well, I'm a Night Spirit. I can also bend and manipulate the shadows and darkness to my will."_

_"Cool." Jack smiled but then peered at Shadow before stating, "How does the name Shadow sound?"_

_Bella nodded. "It suits you."_

_Shadow nodded. "Alright. Say, Jack, would you like to come to England with us?"_

_Bella grinned. "We've been hearing rumors about this Ghost that is haunting some castle from the medieval times. We were going to go there tonight but we saw Pitch," She spat out his name as if it were something bitter in her mouth. "Bothering you and we decided to help you out."_

_Jack nodded. "I don't mind. I was going to England anyway. It's almost time for their first snowfall."_

_"Sweet!" Shadow grinned before he disappeared in another arch of darkness. Bella rolled her eyes and snorted, "Such a drama queen."_

_"I am not a drama queen, Ms. Daisy!" _

_"Hey! Come out here so I can punch you!"_

_"Not happening!" _

_Jack laughed as he followed the two Spirits across countries and seas, with laughter and chattering voices filling up his night and slowly, his previous fear sort of ebbed away. _

"So, that's how you two met." Caleb nodded his head.

"Where is this Bella person?" Tooth asked. "I want to thank her for saving Jack from Pitch." Her feathers ruffled from anger as the emotion was sprawled over everyone's face.

"I wonder wha the next memory will show." Jamie mused aloud.

"Hey, Jack?" Cupcake asked. "Was that the Ghost you were talking about a while back?"

Jack nodded and grinned. "Yup,"

"I hope you have some nice memories." Sophie hoped with childlike innocence. "I'd hate to see you sad or whatever."

"Yeah…" Jack's voice trailed. He nearly snorted at the thought of _"nice memories"_…but then his eyes widened as he understood that they'd see all of his important memories as an Immortal meaning, they'd see some bad, like, those stupid Summer Sprites. Jack scowled. Even though their "Queen" was a nice gal, they were all very vicious and cruel and exceptionally rude towards him. Thank goodness Spring and Autumn saved him almost every time.

Keyword: almost.

Jack's shoulders slumped unnoticeably but before anyone could do anything, a bright light flashed and blinded everyone as a mop of black hair tumbled onto the white floors, standing in a battle position, a battle axe high up in the air like they were about to throw, and a war cry of, "Oranges!"

The light faded and Jack blinked, incredulous, as he blurted, "Bella?"


	12. Chapter 12

_A/N: Thanks so much for the support! Especially for the one person who said (I forgot their username), in their review, "and rest in peace daintydreams's grandpa" that really made me happy. I know he's in a better place now. Anyway, enough of the tears, you'll understand what Bella meant with her war cry "Oranges!" it'll be explained (hopefully) in a memory. You'll also understand what Jack means by "stupid Summer Sprites" and their "Queen". I have an idea for you guys, whoever guesses (first) who the Summer Queen, Autumn King, and Spring Queen is gets to have a chapter in my new one-shot/arc collection that I'm going to do as a sequel to memories. I might even make them a character (if they please) so, give me all your guesses! Here's how it's going to go:_

_1__st__ guesser: A three-part arc in the new sequel-collection dedicated to them. A shout out._

_2__nd__ guesser: an original character in Remembering or Sequel and a one-shot (whether they want it to be in the collection or separate like Iced Perfection). A shout out._

_3__rd__ guesser: original character in either Remembering or Sequel and a shout out. (with a chapter (or memory) dedicated to that character._

_Have fun guessing and don't forget to review, follow, and favorite! ( I might be uploading some new one-shots, or a new story, I'm not sure. I'll just follow with where my muse takes me). I hope you like this chapter!_

_Disclaimer: _I do not own Rise of The Guardians or any of the familiar occurrences that took place in both the book series and the movie. I only own my OC's and text. This is purely for my entertainment. I also don't own any book for movie preferences. The Movie References belong to DreamWorks Corp. and their creators/creations. The Book References of the Guardians of Childhood belong to William Joyce. No copyright infringement intended.

**Warning(s): **_contains language (and, maybe, some offensive insults-I'm sorry if anyone is offended), contains bullying, suggestive violent themes, mentions of depression. Read at your own risk. _

_Chapter Twelve_

Bella's grip on her battle axe faltered and she looked around. Her shoulders slumped and she pouted, "Aw, I was about to destroy this Medusa Wannabe. I had my battle cry and axe all in position. That's not fair!" She had a slight Irish accent and then she whirled around. Her eyes widened as she took in everyone but then her pout turned into a large grin as she spotted her white-haired little brother. "Jack!" She cried before dropping the axe and then pouncing on the winter spirit. "I haven't seen you since…since…since our last Winter spent with Princess."

"You know, she won't like you saying that." Shadow raised his eyebrow at her before walking towards her battle axe and inspecting it. "You know, I really approve of your weapon choice in the last century."

"Why, thank you." Bella giggled before hugging Jack fiercely.

Jack gasped. "Can't…br…eathe…"

"Oops." Bella released her hold on him. "Sorry." That was when she finally looked around the room and noticed the Legends and the children. "Uh…and who might you be?"

Once again, introductions were thrown around along with the occasional, "You're battle axe is so cool!" (courtesy of Jamie, Caleb, Claude, Cupcake, and Monty (some things truly never change from childhood)). Bella asked, "Okay, so, let me get this straight. I was in the middle of a bloody battle with some evil Spirit because she stole my bloody muffins-Jack, don't comment, Shadow, yes it was that Spirit-who looked a lot like Medusa from Greek Myths and right when I was about the cut the bloody git's head off, I'm engulfed into a bright light, landing in this white room, and now all of yeh 're tellin' meh tha' 'e 're wat'hin Jack's mem'ries?"

Her Irish accent became thick on her tongue with each word towards the end of her sentence.

"Hey," Jack cut in, "Watch the language. We have a twelve-year-old in the premises and, Tooth, you can take your hands off my ears, now." Jack had his hands covering Sophie's ears and in return, Jack's ears were covered by Tooth's dainty, smooth palms.

"Wait a minute," Bella looked at them. "Just how old were you when you became Jack Frost?"

Jack mumbled a word underneath his breath that Bella couldn't catch. "Come again?" Jack mumbled it again, looking down at the floor, and Bella's patience was about to dry out. "Seriously, Jack, tell meh an' stop tha' mum'lin'!"

"He's fourteen!" Sophie yelled. "I can't hear anything but I think that's what you're asking. Did I get it right?" everyone, except Jack and Sophie, winced.

"Sheesh, ankl'bitta', yah 'ave one set a' 'ungs on yah." Bunny cringed and his ears twitched painfully since he had the most sensitive ears in the room.

"Tell me about it." Jamie snorted.

"You're fourteen?" Bella gaped and Jack nodded, finally shrugging off Tooth's hands.

"Guys, I think the memory is starting." Monty pointed out and everyone looked towards the bubble-screen.

"Jack is ninety-eight years old Spirit years." Manny said and the memory started.

_The sun was setting and Jack was whistling as he walked on tree branches, jumping from branch to branch with feather-weight steps. He was currently in Montana, as he passed a sign that said, "Welcome to Azure, Montana" this was one of the towns he loved since he could create heavy snowfalls. _

_Red, pink, purple, and orange streaks painted the sky as the sun dipped into the horizon and Jack smiled softly at the beautiful scenery but a voice interrupted his peaceful and happy moment. "What do you think you are doing?" Jack whirled around to face the intruder and his eyes widened from surprise and, dare he ever admit it, with a twinge of fear. _

Jack gulped as he recognized this moment. "Sophie," He leaned down to her height a bit and whispered, "Can you do me a favor?"

"Sure." Sophie removed her eyes from the memory and stared into Jack's orbs. "What is it?"

"When I say the word…uh…icicles, I guess, I want you to cover your ears and shut your eyes, okay?" Jack hoped that Sophie would agree. "I'll be covering your ears too, I guess, so you won't hear anything."

"Why?" She asked.

"Because…" Jack trailed off. "There are things in this memory that I don't want you to see. Even I don't want to see it and I lived through it."

Sophie nodded. "Okay, I'll do it. Icicles, right?" Jack nodded and then they paid attention to the memory.

_"…H-Heath," Jack nearly fell off his branch in surprise at the Summer Sprite that was in front of him. "…What…h-how d-did you…find…me?"_

_"Well, someone looks surprised he lost the game?" A female voice patronized in a snarky voice. Summer Sprites were two inches taller than Jack (some were even taller) and they had wings, but they always had some type of weapon on them and they were hotheaded, they loved to burn things and spread heat waves where heat waves weren't needed, and they sometimes spread fires that were wild, untamable, and deadly but Jack always tried to stop them whenever he was near one. It was one of the reasons why he was on most of the Summer Sprites' bad sides. The only Summer Sprite that liked him was the "runt of the litter" and she was the favorite Sprite to the Summer Queen. _

_Heath smirked. "Seva, I think Jack here forgot that it isn't winter, it's summer." Both of the creatures of Summer eyes flashed dangerously and Jack's eyes moved around in search of an escape route. It was impossible. He was alone, and nightfall was beginning to fall. The worst thing, was that the Summer Sprites found out about his fear of the dark. _

_Summer Sprites were also older than Jack both physically and mentally. _

"I don't like them." Shadow grumbled, shuffling a bit closer to Jack, his stomach churning at the feeling of something bad about to happen.

"Jack?" Sophie was starting to get scared. She didn't like the fear that spread over Jack's face nor did she like the evil voices of the Summer Sprites. Even though Sophie was twelve, she was still a child, and some things she still didn't understand and some things still scared her-for goodness sake, she still slept with her baby blanket. (She had some serious separation anxiety and issues.).

Sophie was still a child. Even though she laughed in the face of fear, (literally) she was still a kid. "Icicles?"

Jack looked down at Sophie and gave her an uneasy smile though it came out as a grimace. "If you want," He murmured back. Sophie nodded and shut her eyes, before covering her eyes. She felt the cold hands of Jack as he kept his end of the deal, covering her own ears and now, she couldn't hear a thing and all she could see was darkness.

_Seva snickered and then fake pouted, "Aw, poor Jack, I think he's getting memory loss. Don't you think, Heath?"_

_"I agree." Heath rumbled. He narrowed his eyes. "What have we told you?" _

_Jack paled, if it was even noticeable with his already pale skin, and gulped. "Uh…Uh…n-not to mess with your season."_

_Seva tsk'ed and said, "But you did, didn't you?"_

_A spark flared in Jack's eyes as he responded, "I didn't! It's the dead of Winter! In a month, it'll be spring. I don't know why you're bothering me right now when I'm clearly doing my job! Go to Brazil, it's summer there!" _

_"Wrong thing to say, Jackie." Seva growled in anger and Jack didn't even get to react when hands wrapped around his forearm and a searing, white hot pain entered his system as nails dug into his skin. Jack shut his eyes and gritted his teeth as he bore the pain with a high head._

_"Aw, look at him." Seva cooed. "He's trying to act all tough." _

The females eyes' flashed dangerously. They all growled with ire simultaneously, "I'm going to kill her."

The boys said, "We're going to kill him." Sandy had a dangerous look on his face that definitely made Jack know that he did not want to be on his bad side, ever.

"Uh…which him, exactly?" Jack asked timidly. He was trying his best to suppress his trembles as he remembered the pain in this scene. He felt like he wanted to cry.

Shadow glanced at him and smiled warmly. "Not you, Snowman. We're talking about Heath."

"Snowman?" Bunny raised an eyebrow with a smirk on his face.

Jack narrowed his eyes at him and said, "Don't even thing about it, Kangaroo."

"Oi! I am not a Kangaroo!"

_Heath smirked. And before Jack knew it, the breath was knocked out of him as Heath punched him in the stomach. Jack doubled over, feeling more pain and burns. Seva slapped him across the face, her nails digging into his cheek. Jack tumbled back into the base of the tree from the harsh blows. His staff was harshly yanked out of his grasp and thrown to the ground. Thankfully, it landed on a snowdrift, staying intact. _

_"Poor Jackie," Seva muttered sardonically. "His staff is gone, so powerless without it."_

_Another punch was landed and Jack cried out with pain as fingers curled around his neck, fingers that were burning and choking him. Jack couldn't contain the scream that erupted from his mouth. Seva and Heath laughed. _

Out of instinct, anyone who had a weapon on them, touched it as they watched their youngest family member get severly abused by a fellow Spirit or Sprite. They all shared another look, they would definitely be looking after Jack now, especially if there were more Spirits and Sprites like Seva and Heath.

"Where is their bloody Queen or King?" Bella muttered angrily. Tooth had long since hovered towards Jack, wrapping him into a hug. He didn't even try to struggle in her grip, he just tightened his hold over Sophie's eyes as she was muttering random lyrics underneath her breath to keep herself occupied, waiting patiently for the memory to be over.

_"Poor Jack," Heath mocked. "No one's going to come save you now. No one likes Winter. All Winter is, is death, and the end of life."_

_"No it's not," Jack croaked once Seva had released her choking grip on his neck. He winced as he rubbed his tender flesh. "Winter can also be…snowballs…and…fun…times…"_

_The Summer Sprites snorted. "You keep telling yourself that," Seva snorted. "No one's ever heard of winter being anything but death, starvation, and fear. That's all you are and it's our job to teach you a lesson." _

_"It'll be easier if you would just, you know, drop dead." Heath quipped. _

Tooth gasped as her feathers ruffled with determination as she basically growled, "I'm seriously contemplating becoming a murderer just for these two Sprites." Everyone gaped at Tooth, who blinked and said, "What? They're hurting Sweet Tooth!"

**_You know, _**_Jack thought through the pain. __**That doesn't seem like such a bad idea.**_

"Jack!" Nearly everyone, except Sophie, Sandy (who used exclamation points instead) and said person, yelled. Jack pretended like he hadn't heard a thing and was whistling a tune innocently, looking in a different direction away from everyone.

_Jack shut his eyes and was about to welcome another world of pain, one he was beginning to get used to, since he was in so much pain it was becoming daily, when someone screeched, "Wha' tha' bloody 'ell do ah thin' ya're doin' ta tha wintah Spiri'?" _

_The last thing Jack saw before he blacked out, was Seva and Heath's angry expression morphing into a frightened one. The world when black after that._

"I hope their Queen demolished them." Shadow scowled.

Everyone agreed. North looked over at Jack and asked, "Queen is nice, no?"

Jack nodded. "Yeah. She's nice to me, though she's very stubborn and fierce when she wants to be." He removed his hands from Sophie's ears who then opened her eyes and saw that the danger was gone. Slowly, her fear ebbed.

"Is the memory over?" Her voice was soft and small and it made everyone (except Jack) look at her, and instead of seeing a twelve-year-old, they saw two-year-old Sophie Bennet.

"Yeah," Jack smiled at her. "It's over."

"Good." She nodded and then winced, rubbing her ears. "You're hands are freezing!"

Jack laughed; way to leave it to Sophie to ease the tension. "Well, I am the embodiment of Winter, you know."

"Well," She huffed. "…shut up…" childishly, Jack stuck out his tongue at her in retaliation and she returned the favor.

"So, Jack," Bella grinned almost wickedly. "Where are those Summer Sprites?"

Jack shrugged. "I haven't seen them since…" his thoughts drifted as he remembered his last 'visit' from the sprites. They weren't themselves and they knew that Mother Nature was out to get them, eliminate them, or strip away their powers for some century. He hadn't heard even a thought of them. It was as if they didn't exist anymore. "…since 1924." He lied. He didn't know why he did, it came out involuntarily.

"Really?" North peered at Jack.

"Really," Jack's voice flew up an octave before he coughed and said in a normal voice, "Really." It was a dead giveaway that he was lying, not to mention he wasn't looking anyone in the eye but no one said anything for the next memory had begun.


	13. Chapter 13

_A/n: Thanks so much for the reviews and [insert high pitched scream] 148 reviews! You guys are truly spoiling me. Lol. So, for the Guessing Contest (please PM me or write your request/info in the review), I have the winners!_

_1__st__ place is: Phoenix's Moon: She/he guessed first, even though s(h)(e) spelled Merida's name wrong. But, that's fine. Phoenix's Moon, you are now going to have a 3-arc in the sequel, and a shout out! _

_2__nd__ place is: Time To Be: You guessed second and you now are going to have an OC in either this story or the sequel, a one-shot (specify if you want it to be in the sequel or separate) and a shout out. _

_3__rd__ place is: Qwerty124 and The Daughter of Wisdom and Music congrats, you are both the third place winner! And you are going to have an OC in either the sequel or Remembering, a shout out, and a chapter (or memory) dedicated to them. [it was a tie since you both gave me the answers in the review at 5:04 PM so it was only fair that I made it a tie between you two]_

_[please state your info in either a PM or a review)_

_Anyway, please don't forget to favorite, follow, and review! I hope you enjoy this chapter. Also, school is coming up pretty fast so updates may not be as fast as you'd like. Maybe, it'll be over the weekend if I have time. Because I'll be doing clubs, I'm going to try out for the volleyball team, and etc. but I WILL NOT forget about this story. I pinky promise. Well, I'm giving you guys a virtual pinky promise. Lol. I'm so weird, I swear. Also, if anyone cares, I'll be updating my profile but I'm not doing any profile picture or story picture because apparently, I have to have "permission" to upload it if I get it from a website, which I do, I get all my images on Google Images so…yeah…ooh, before I forget, I've decided that there will be around twenty chapters of this and yes, I will be including some parts that happened during the movie. _

_Disclaimer: _I do not own Rise of The Guardians or any of the familiar occurrences that took place in both the book series and the movie. I only own my OC's and text. This is purely for my entertainment. I also don't own any book for movie preferences. The Movie References belong to DreamWorks Corp. and their creators/creations. The Book References of the Guardians of Childhood belong to William Joyce. No copyright infringement intended.

**Warning(s): **_contains language (and, maybe, some offensive insults-I'm sorry if anyone is offended), contains bullying, suggestive violent themes, mentions of depression. Read at your own risk. _

_Chapter Thirteen_

"Jack is 112 in Spirit Years," Manny said.

Bella walked up to Jack from behind, leaned down to his ear, and whispered, "I hope you know, that whether you like it or not, you are going to tell us the truth about those Summer Sprites and why you lied."

Jack gritted his teeth, he knew arguing with Bella was a lost cause, especially if it was over something that regarded Jack's physical, emotional, and mental health. It was obvious to anyone that knew them that Bella looked at Jack as a little brother. It was annoying at times but it was also a very nice feeling to know that somewhere, someone always had his back.

_"Stupid! Stupid! Stupid!" Jack seemed to be reprimanding himself harshly as he walked through a forest. It was daylight out; the sky was clouded with gray clouds with tiny flecks of blue as the sky poked out. He was currently somewhere in Canada, and Jack's face was flushed and tear streaks marked his face. _

Tooth gasped at the tears. "Jack," She flitted towards Jack, looking him in the eye. She had a stern but gentle look on her face. "One, don't you **ever **call yourself stupid, _ever_. Two, why were you crying?"

Jack gaped at Tooth, as did Bella since she wasn't there when Tooth started to act all motherly towards him. Jack stuttered out a reply that sounded like, "…find out…memory…okay…"

Tooth seemed to hear his words perfectly and she nodded before surprising the winter spirit by wrapping him in a hug. Then, they turned to the memory.

**_It's all my fault. All my fault. All my fault. All my fault. _**_ Jack's thoughts were like a mantra going over and over, a school chant that everyone screamed at games. Jack sniffled and rubbed his eyes harshly with his free hand that wasn't gripping his staff. His icy blue eyes looked haunted as he saw a death that he never should've seen. There was a slip of ice left on the road and the family had skidded across the road, crashing into a tree. There was only one survivor and it was a one-year-old child who would never grow up with the love of a mother, father, and siblings. Jack let out a sob as grief clouded his vision. __**Seva was right. I'm a monster. I'm a killer. I'm…death impersonated. **_

Everyone, minus Jack and Sandy (who gasped silently), as they heard his thoughts and understood what happened. Out of no where, Bella took out a notepad and a pencil and started scribbling onto the paper.

"Uh, Bella?" Shadow peered at her. "What are you writing?"

"Torture plans for a certain Summer Sprite." Was Bella's blunt, nonchalant response.

_Jack leaned against a tree, gasping his breaths, and clutching the front of his shirt as he slid down until he was sitting on the heels of his feet. __**Maybe Heath was onto something, **__Jack sniffled and attempted to stop the sobs racking through his body but he just couldn't get the image of the car wreckage, the blood, the gore, the lifeless faces and twisted bodies, and the screams, and cries out of his mind. __**Maybe I should die.**_

"If you die," Jamie glared sternly at him. "Either by a natural cause or suicide, I swear I will bring you back to life and scream and comfort you for twenty-four hours myself."

"Scream and comfort?" Jack asked.

"I'll comfort you first and then I'll scream at you about how stupid you were being." Jamie responded.

_"Wha's 'rong wit' thee?" An Irish voice broke Jack out of his thoughts and Jack looked up to see the Summer Queen, Merida, standing in front of him with her green dress, her curly red wild hair out, and her bright blue eyes peering at him. Her hands were on her hips and she had a smirk on her face. Her quiver was on her back filled to the brim with arrows and she had her bow in her hand. _

_"Hello, Merida." Ever since she had found out about her Summer Sprites nasty behavior and abuse, she had taken up her free time to checking up randomly on the Winter King. Although, when she first met him, she hadn't expected him to be so…well…young. Instantly, she became protective over him; his fun, childish demeanor reminded her of her three younger brothers once upon a time and she took an instant liking to him, threatening her Sprites that if they ever messed with him again, they'd not only have to personally answer to her but to Mother Nature as well, who was still sour towards Seva and Heath. Merida was still waiting for Mother Nature to give her the okay to strip them from their powers. Mother Nature was usually a kind-hearted, gentle, but stern, and hyper person (she thought of all Spirits of Nature to be her children and their Sprites to be her Grandchildren) but when someone messed with the "baby of the family" (which Jack was since he was the only Spirit under 500 years old) she became a very sadistic creature who wasn't afraid to wreak havoc. _

_Quite personally, Merida never really liked Seva and Heath. _

_Merida broke away from her thoughts as another sob came out of Jack's mouth. "Jack? Wha's tha matta?" _

_"I'm a killer," Jack mumbled as he shivered from the images sprawling in his mind. "I'm a murderer." Merida's eyes softened and she seemed to deflate. _

_"No, ya not." Merida crouched down next to him. "What happen?"_

_"There was…ice…on…the…the road a-and…" Jack sobbed as his heart seemed to squeeze itself painfully. "…and there was only o-one s-survivor. A-a one y-year old w-who w-w-would n-never grow up w-with th-the l-love o-of a m-mother, f-father, o-or s-siblings. I…I killed her e-entire f-family."_

_"Oh, Jack…" Merida watched as Jack crumbled with tears. She gathered Jack in his arms as he cried heart wrenching sobs. A few tears were gathered in her eyes, whether she wanted to admit it or not. "Yeh is no killer. Yeh dinnae know." _

_Jack sniffed. "It still happened."_

_"Well," A male voice entered the scene. "You can't mess with fate. Trust me, I would know." _

_Merida and Jack looked towards the voice and saw a large, black lizard with wings and emerald eyes. Jack's eyes widened as he recognized it as a dragon._

"Is that a dragon?" Monty gaped at the bubble-screen memory. Jack nodded.

"Sick!"

_The person that was perched on top of the dragon slid off with ease. He stood at a height of six feet, with tousled brown-reddish hair, and large green eyes. He was very handsome and looked to be around nineteen-twenty years of age. He was wearing Viking like clothing and he also had a metal, fake leg._

_"Hello, Jack Frost." He smiled warmly at Jack. "I'm Hiccup, the Spirit of Fall or Autumn as some might call it. Most just call me the King of Fall or the King of Autumn. Nice to finally meet you," _

_Jack nodded and sniffled again, "N-Nice to m-meet you too." Jack stood on his trembling feet, gripping his staff tightly and close to his chest. _

_"If it makes you feel any better," Hiccup said, "All seasons kill. It's apart of nature. Some people die in Autumn, others in Summer, some, even, in Spring, and others in Winter, your own realm. It isn't your fault. It's never your fault. It is simply the natural order of life and death." Throughout this speech, Hiccup was keeping eye contact with Jack._

_At first, it made Jack weary but he then realized that Hiccup meant no harm and was simply sharing his wisdom to him like…an older brother would. _

_Hiccup suddenly chuckled, "If you keep it up with those eyes of yours, Punzie might just die form your 'adorableness'." He snorted at the image, Merida did the same. Though, Jack was lost._

_"Punzie?" He asked._

_"Rapunzel," Hiccup responded. "The Spirit of or Queen of Spring."_

_Merida chortled, "Tha girl's a b'ck't of sunshine, tha's wha she is."_

_Hiccup laughed, "You're telling me."_

_"And what eyes?" Jack asked. Though, as Hiccup's mouth opened to speak, he was interrupted by a squeal, and a flash of golden and pink. Before Jack knew it, he was tackled to the ground by someone hugging him tightly. _

_"Oh, you are just too adorable!" The hyperactive female literally screamed into his ear. Jack winced. "Can I please, please, please, pleasepleasepleasepleasepleaseplease keep him?"_

"What?" Nearly everyone asked in curiosity and confusion.

_"…what…?"_

Everyone laughed at the thought of Memory Jack basically repeating them.

_Merida rolled her eyes. "Rapunzel, stop scarin' tha boy,"_

_"Hey!" Jack said, offended. _

_Hiccup snorted. "I told you Punzie would call him adorable and squeal over him."_

_"Can you get off of me?" Jack squeaked as Rapunzel hugged him tighter. _

_"Nope!" Rapunzel replied. "Oh, you are just too sweet!"_

_"And you are getting into my personal square!" Jack yelled desperately. _

"Square?"

_That made them all pause as they asked at the same time, "Square?"_

_"Yes." Finally, Rapunzel released her Death Grip of Jack and allowed him to stand. He picked up his staff and dusted off his clothes, huffing. "People usually say Personal Space or Bubble and I find that it's overused so I say square." _

_"Yer an odd lad," Merida inquired. _

_The dragon growled and clicked his tongue in its' language and Hiccup looked at it and said, "Toothless, really? I thought Hookfang was under control-," another click-"seriously? Another toothache? Oh, where is that bloody man, anyway?" _

_"Are you talking to…uh…Toothless?" Jack asked. "What is Toothless anyway?"_

_"Yes, and he's a dragon." Hiccup replied before he hopped onto the saddle, positioning himself. "Well, I got to go. I have a Crisis in Taberna incident." _

_"Tab…what?" Jack blinked in confusion. _

_"It means Fall Tavern in Latin," Rapunzel smiled at him, her light green eyes sparkling. _

_Jack nodded but then he stiffened as he heard the familiar laughter. "Uh…I…got to go." The laughter was coming near. _

_Rapunzel furrowed her eyebrows together in confusion and she tilted her head to side. "Why? It's just some of my Spring Fae. I'll introduce you to them."_

_"Uh…uh…no…no, I'm good." Jack was quick to answer. "I…uh…have to spread s-some snow in…in…Greenland…so…uh…see you…sometime?"_

_"Jack?" right when he was about to take off, Merida stopped him. The voices were getting closer, getting clearer. "'ave any of tha seasonal spiri's hurt yeh b'for?"_

_Jack panicked for a split second before he lied, "Nope." Before Rapunzel and Merida could do anything, Jack was being swept away by the Wind, who sensed his urgency to get away. _

"…Jack…?" Tooth looked at her little Sweet Tooth. "Did you…did you lie?"

Jack's eyes widened and he gulped visibly. His head raced with lies to tell but the damage was done, they already knew. North sighed heavily and pinched the bridge of his nose. "Who?" He asked Jack. "Who has hurt you?"

Jack shifted on his feet uncomfortably with all of the intense, stern, scolding stares. "I don't know exactly." He finally muttered. "I lost count after…you know…fifty-two Sprites."

"In total? Of all Seasonal Spirits?" Tooth gaped and then gasped once Jack nodded.

"Oh, sweet tooth!" she cried, launching herself at him and pulled him tightly into a hug.

"Mhm…" Bella nodded, scribbling more words on her notepad. "…add…ice pit…boiling…lava…dirt…daggers…"

Bella looked up and blinked at everyone who stared at her. "What?"

Shadow peered over her shoulder and said, "Add a target with flaming arrows…"

"Ooh! That's a good one!" Bella grinned as she scribbled the torture down on the notepad. Everyone stared at them and Jack just laughed.

"That's Bella and Shadow for you." Jack chuckled.

Everyone shared short chuckles before another memory appeared.


	14. Chapter 14

_a/n: Thanks so much for the reviews, follows, and favorites last chapter! I have the first day of high school tomorrow, so updates will be slower until I get used to my new schedule/routine this year and I may only have time to update over the weekend. Also, you'll understand why Jack lied about the Summer Sprites and the 1924 thing in the sequel, that'll either become an arc or a simple one-shot/chapter. Also, I'm going to start taking requests on what to write in the sequel which is now called :The Perfectly Dysfunctional Life of a Winter Child. I have absolutely no idea with what the first chapter, the opening, is going to be. Anyway, if you have any requests for me just give me a PM (I may not see the review if you review it to me) and I'll try to use each and every request I receive. But there is one category that I will absolutely, under no circumstance (until I get a bit older), will I be writing anything along the lines of M rated, lemons, etc. I'm highly uncomfortable with even thinking about writing that type of category (call me a prude, I don't really give a damn-excuse my vocabulary-I'm only fourteen so…). Sorry to disappoint, maybe in the future I'll start writing things along those lines but right now, it's a big no-no. Also, I have a couple new OC's coming in this chapter from my contest winners (I might be doing a lot of those, depending on how generous I am or what kind of mood I'm in). Please do not forget to review, favorite, and follow! Also, spread the word of this story! Also, someone pointed it out to me that Merida is Scottish and not Irish. I get confused with those two since, to me, their accents sound the same. _

**This chapter/memory is dedicated to Qwerty124, one of the 3****rd**** place winners in the Guessing Contest a while back. Her OC appears in this chapter but it belongs to her, I only own the way I crafted her into the story and her antics (I also tweaked her appearance), I guess. The idea of the character belongs to Qwerty124. **

_Disclaimer: _I do not own Rise of The Guardians or any of the familiar occurrences that took place in both the book series and the movie. I only own my OC's and text. This is purely for my entertainment. I also don't own any book for movie Movie References belong to DreamWorks Corp. and their creators/creations. The Book References of the Guardians of Childhood belong to William Joyce. No copyright infringement intended.

**Warning(s): **_contains language (and, maybe, some offensive insults-I'm sorry if anyone is offended), contains bullying, suggestive violent themes, mentions of depression. Read at your own risk. _

_Chapter Fourteen_

"Jack is 213 in Spirit Years," Manny said.

Bella had put away her Torture Pad and stuck her pencil between her ear. The others were having small conversation while Sophie stuck to Jack for comfort. The last memory still frightened her, even though it was over. Jamie kept giving them side glances, he was very protective over Sophie, and now that he finally knew Jack's age (three-hundred-years be damned) he instantly became protective over the winter child.

He smirked slightly, Jack was going to be highly annoyed with everyone since they all understood that he would forever be a child. Suddenly, another white flash blinded them as a girl with blonde hair and red and blue highlights tumbled into the white room.

"Oomph," She grunted. "Great, all I wanted was to get a drink of water from a creek but no, I just had to get swallowed by a white light and basically kidnapped. Nice going, Emma."

"Em?" Jack asked tentatively. Emma tumbled to her feet and whirled around to see her old time friend (ahem, only friend really) Jack Frost. Everyone in the room took in her appearance. Emma had long blonde hair that tumbled down her shoulders in perfect ringlets, falling softly past her bra-line. She had a heart-shaped face with high cheekbones and a strong jaw line. She had a tiny nose and thin, light pink lips that were currently open from surprise. She had light freckles dotting her milky-white skin. She had doe-like eyes that reminded everyone of chocolate that seemed to have flecks of gray surrounding the pupil. Emma wore baggy red jeans with dark blue colored suspenders, with a blue t-shirt underneath her black zip-up hoodie. She seemed to have the same problem as Jack, Tooth noticed with a frown, no shoes. Her hood was also up on her head.

Adorned at her waist was a black belt that had scabbards tied through the loops. One was a gun hoister and the other was an actual sword scabbard. Her eyes seemed to twinkle with mischief. "Jack?" She tilted her head to the side a bit before her lips twisted into a tiny smirk. "I haven't seen you since…since…"

"2003?" Jack inquired, leaning against his staff. Emma nodded but then she noticed the other people in the room and drew back into herself. Jack frowned, he hated Shy Emma.

"Uh…hi…?" Emma's voice became soft as she looked around the room skittishly.

Once again, introductions and greetings were thrown around the room. ("Hi, I'm Tooth!" "Hello, Shiela." "My name's Sophie!" "You're beautiful-ow, Claude-anyway, I'm Caleb." "Cupcake. I love your sword, by the way." "May I see that gun of yours? The names Bella, by the way." Etc.)

There was another detail everyone noticed, Emma looked around the same age as Jack.

"How old are you?" North asked the now skittish and shy girl.

"Uh…um…fourteen…why?" Emma asked.

"No reason." North shrugged. "Is just that you look around Jack's age, which you are."

"O-kay?" Emma blinked and then looked over at Jack, "Care to tell me why I'm here?"

"Man in the Moon sent us all here to see my memories," Jack grumbled.

"Really?" Emma was surprised. "Cool, I guess."

"The memory is starting," Monty interrupted all conversation. "Shh."

"Oh, shh yourself!"

_He heard the cries before he saw the girl. He heard the insults before he saw the bullies. He heard the blows before he saw the fists. _

_"You're so stupid!"_

_Smack!_

_"You just don't deserve to live!"_

_Crack!_

_"Leave me alone!" A female voice screamed out. "Just…just go away!"_

"You've got to be kidding me." Emma groaned as she recognized not only the voice but the scenery of the memory. Jack sighed and gave her a look that screamed, _I know how you feel._

_Jack gritted his teeth. It was one thing for himself to get bullied, if it kept the Sprites and Spirits away from other innocents than by all means, pick on him instead but if someone else was being bullied…well…he truly became the rumor of "Old Man Winter". He gripped his staff tightly in his hands and breathed in deeply as his eyes flashed dangerously at the sounds. _

_"Aw, is the Spirit of Wisdom getting tired?"_

_"I think we should tuck her into bed."_

_This Spirit of Wisdom drew in a gasping breath and exhaled with a panicked voice, "Wait—no, please—," the girl was cut off by an echoing Smack! Crack! Smack! Jack's anger seemed to grow as he shifted through trees, trying so hard to get there in time. There was silence except for snickering but those snickers drifted away as did the bullies. _

**_Grr, _**_Jack said in his mind. __**They got away…**_

"Grr?" Cupcake looked over at Jack, with an amused look on her face. Jack rolled his eyes and mumbled incoherently under his breath. Emma heard what he said and nudged his side. "Language," She whispered with her own smirk on her face.

_Jack walked through the silent forestry of Greenland, snow crunching underneath his feet yet he made no footsteps. Finally, as he ducked into an arch that led to an obscured meadow, he saw droplets of blood that stained his snow. His eyes widened and his breath quickened. _

**_Oh Moon, _**_He panicked in his mind. __**Please tell me I'm not **_**that ****_late._**

_Jack sped through the meadow and if he hadn't heard the pained groan, he would've missed the opening to the tiny burrow completely. He dropped onto his knees and peered inside. Deep down inside of the enlarged cave was the silhouette of a girl. This time, she had a grey skirt that reached an inch past her knees, a light blue button-down blouse, and a gray knitted blazer. Her blonde hair had green and orange highlights in it and she was gripping a gray colored staff that didn't look like a Shepard's Crook like his own but it jutted upwards like a Z and had strange markings that intertwined in a white color. _

_Jack hesitated for a moment but slid silently into the cave. He kneeled down next to the girl and gritted his teeth angrily as he saw the flecks of blood caked on her hairline, her lip which was cut and bruised, and, oddly, it stained around her wrist and kept enlarging, soiling the gray blazer. Jack was alarmed. He didn't know how to heal someone except himself, which was usually burying himself in some snow and frosting the wound over with ice and frost until it healed. _

_He didn't know how to heal a Spirit of Wisdom. What, did he have to go raid a library and drop it onto her as if it were a pile of leaves?_

_He didn't know so he gently poked her with the end of his staff._

"Really, Jack? You poked her with a stick?" Shadow mused.

"Staff, Shadow, not stick!" Jack glared at him.

"You guys have this squabble _every single time_." Bella groaned. "Shadow, stop annoying the kid."

"Yeah!" Jack agreed but then faltered. "What-hey!"

"What?" Bella innocently looked at her surrogate little brother. "You do realize that you _are _an Immortal Child, right?"

"Don't remind me," He grumbled.

_The girl didn't move except to moan so, Jack poked her again and again and again and again and againandagainandagainandagainandagainandagainandag ainand—okay, you get the point. He kept on poking the comatose girl until her eyes flew open and flicked towards Jack. She let out a high-pitched shriek which made Jack jump back and hold his throbbing ears and she scrambled towards the back of the wall. _

_"D-Don't…don't hurt me…I s-s-s-swear I'll…I'll…" _

_"I'm not going to hurt you," Jack's voice was unexplainably soft and gentle. "I'm just trying to help." He kept eye contact with the girl and waited for a moment before speaking again. "I'm Jack, Jack Frost. You are?"_

_"Emma." She responded. "I…I don't have a…a last…name."_

_"Last names don't really matter." Jack smiled warmly. "What happened?" _

_"…some Spirits don't like me because I'm the Spirit of Wisdom—wait a minute, why am I telling you this, I don't even know you!" She outbursted before her eyes widened as she realized that she yelled. Involuntarily she flinched and whimpered, "Sorry…sorry…sorry…"_

_Jack was appalled as he thought, __**just how bad did they hurt her?**_

"Very…" Emma whispered to him. "Very, very bad,"

_"It's fine," Jack grinned, flashing his pearly whites. "We all have our outbursts. It's no problem. So…" Jack looked around her home. "Nice home, you got here." _

_Emma sniffled, "Thanks." Her voice was tiny, almost as wispy and soft like the wind. _

_"So, what does the Spirit of Wisdom mean?" Jack asked, perching himself atop of his staff. _

_Emma stared at him with wide-eyed that Jack swore he had seen once upon a time. Then, she sighed and said, "It means that I have knowledge beyond known to Man. Anything that revolves around wisdom, whether it be pointless or not, I understand the minute it is thought of. Spirits and Sprites of all kind assume I'm a egotistical Spirit who thinks she knows all," She laughed dryly. "Well, I kind of do know all but I don't flaunt it around."_

_Jack blinked as she fidgeted with her sleeves and that's when his eyes widened as he realized that he'd forgotten about her wrists! He chewed on his bottom lip before he shrugged off his blue hoodie and took strips of his colonial white shirt. he made sure that his measurements of the strips were correctly proportioned before he kneeled beside Emma, which startled her and she drew back._

_"What are you doing?"_

"Yes, what are you doing, Jack?" North raised his eyebrow in question as he looked over at the winter child he loves like a father would his son.

"You'll see." Jack responded.

_Jack ignored the question as he started to gently wrap the strips around where he could see the wounds were made. Emma's breath quickened a bit as she stared down at him through the curtain of her hair. She gulped, hoping he wouldn't be that observant to know that those wounds were self-inflicted. _

_After both wrists were bandaged Emma gaped at Jack who, in return, gave her a warm smile. _

Pippa's face paled as she caught on. "You didn't…" she looked back at Emma who looked down at her bare feet, biting on her lip shyly. Pippa's eyes and face softened and slowly, unconsciously, she made her way to the Spirit of Winter.

"Didn't what?" Claude asked but Pippa shook her head, her face solemn.

_"It's okay," Jack grinned. "You don't have to be alone anymore."_

_Without knowing why, tears sprang to Emma's eyes and slowly rolled down her face. Jack panicked, "Sorry! S-Sorry! I-I'll leave if you want. I didn't mean to make you cry, I just—,"_

_He was cut off as Emma launched herself onto him, hugging his torso and crying into his stripped shirt. Jack staggered back, flabbergasted, but after a short second, he hugged her back. _

_"It's okay, it's alright," Jack murmured, rubbing Emma's back in calm circles as he'd seen mothers do to their terrified children after a bad dream. "You're not alone, anymore."_

_"Do you promise?" Emma's voice was tiny and reminded him of a small child as she drew back and stared at him through wide, water eyes that made a pang jolt through his heart, a ding in his mind, as if this was something he should've remembered. _

_He smiled as he raised his pinky, wrapped it around hers, and said, "Pinky promise."_

Tooth squealed, "That's so adorable!" all the other females, except Emma, cooed. Jack shared a knowing look with Emma. If everyone got overprotective over them, their reactions towards their…'problems'…might be, well, a problem.

"We'll figure something out," Emma murmured.

"There are no exits, by the way." Jack responded.

"Damn!"


End file.
